Violins, Light
by Mikanis
Summary: L has a second addiction. Light has a plan that's going to get him killed. When everything falls apart, the road is set to take a different path. How far astray can these two go before something breaks? My first DN fic, learning the boys. Sequel is better
1. Music vs Coffee

Music Vs. Coffee

AN- This is my first posted DN story. I've been wanting to write with these guys for a long time, and I hope I've managed to stay in character. There are no spoilers, just a bit of language and L having emotions. Run in fear, he's human! I haven't written much with these two, so I'll do my best. I don't know where this story is going, just that it's going somewhere. All reviews are welcome, even flames, because at least ya took the time to read it!

Also, one tiny little thing I wanted to point out. Kira is not mentioned any where in this chapter. Nor are percentages, nor does L make any accusations, nor does Light do anything suspicious. I'm proud of mehself...muahahaha

Disclaimer- I do not own Death Note, or the series would have stopped at book Seven. I also do not own either of the music pieces listed, nor do I have any right to tell you to look them up on Youtube, because they are wonderful.

Music Vs Coffee

It'd been two weeks. Too long, yes, it was far too long, and if Light Yagami didn't like it… that would just be unfortunate. L glanced from his screen to his near-twitching fingers where they rested on the keyboard. Light was sleeping soundly, and would have to wake soon anyway. It was nearing seven in the morning, time to rise and dress for the day's work. He had only another half hour to sleep. L decided that two weeks of his own sacrifices warranted some in return. _Measure for Measure, Light-kun._

He saved his files to network's server, where they could be accessed from all computers in the building. He'd put together a report for the team to read through while Light slept. A quick glance at Light's face and tiny pang of guilt sounded in his mind, but it was quickly smothered by need. L shut down his laptop and looked away pointedly, as though the youth next to him would pick up on his intentions if he blinked too often. He placed the computer at the foot of the bed, moving slowly so as not to jingle the chain. Then he reconsidered, because he was, after all, about to rudely awaken Light anyway.

He slipped off the bed and pulled his case from beneath it. A quick glance, and yes, Light was still asleep. L usually wasn't this spiteful, but he'd given up a number of things since chaining himself to this arrogant teen. There were some things that just couldn't be set aside, however. The sweets didn't count, they were as much a part of him as his eyes or hair. Still some things…

He returned to the bed and sat cross-legged, something he only did in times like this. While it lowered his reasoning ability, it was well worth the patience it required. He opened both clasps on the sturdy wooden cover and eased it open. The smell of old books, cedar, and fine oil rose, making his hands tremble as he took out his treasure. Light shifted, and L froze for a second, his prize half way out of its case. No, Light still slept on, and damn, L wasn't waiting any more.

He set the violin to his chin and began to play. Softly, at first, he coaxed the scales from the strings, the only form of warm-up he required. L had long loved classical violin, and he was sure that…maybe three people in the world knew it. Himself, Watari, and probably Near had figured it out by now. He glanced at Light again over the top of the case and for the first time in a week, smirked to himself. _Soon to be four people._

Nicolo Paganini's Caprices No. 24 (4)… one of L's favorites. He had it memorized, and it seemed just the sort of music to wake up to. Decided on his piece, he closed the case and set it aside. Without further consideration for anyone else, and an MnM to ease his chocolate craving, he began to play the piece.

It started slow, and L glanced at Light, who had not yet awoken. It jumped to life, dancing, and L forgot about Light, because he needed this. The case was killing him, and exhausting and exhilarating as it was, he'd had little to no stress relief. It'd been two weeks, too long, and here he was with his precious music. The sun was coming up in the window behind the bed and it was warm on his neck and left shoulder. He was dimly aware of Light, jumping to life in front of him, but then that was fading too…

Light was staring, he had to admit. He was furious at being woken early, and he knew it was early, because the alarm was his side of the bed. He'd opened his eyes and seen L's knee, inches from his chest. Strange, and when he looked up, and recognized the sound, he'd froze. He sat there, still. He'd always had a taste for classical music, because to him, it was the perfect form of musical entertainment. It was decidedly human, but it lacked the voices that often ruined other songs. It was a look into what was beautiful about the human mind, without the taint of humanity.

He hadn't known L could play. He was still irritated, but L seemed to be either ignoring him, or lost in his playing. He was so lost in fact, that he was smiling, his eyes closed. That was decidedly new, so Light had sat up, rearranged his pillows, turned off the alarm clock and listened. L held the bow like he did everything else, as though both afraid he'd break it and that it would bite him. His long thin fingers possessed a frightening agility on the neck of the instrument. The violin itself was beautiful, and one could tell it was lovingly fretted over. It was in pristine condition, and it looked almost comical when compared to the unkempt human playing it. The music was amazing…and if L missed a note, Light's half-trained ears never heard it.

Sometime later, the intercom on the desk behind Light buzzed. He got up slowly to answer it, rubbing his suddenly stiff legs. Watari's voice greeted him.

"Good Morning Young Sir."

"Morning, Watari."

"I see L has finally returned to his violin."

"Yes…" Light turned to lean on the desk as he talked, thankful for the extra length of chain that allowed this.

"I had wondered when he would give in again."

"I didn't know he played.", A pause. "Again? So this is normal?"

"Frankly, Yagami-san, you don't know much of anything about him. This is very normal; in fact he has abstained from his playing during your confinement only because he did not wish to be rude. Also, he's a very private person. Now tell me, is his smiling?"

"I…yes."

"Then it will be necessary for you to stop him now."

"I have to stop him? Won't he stop on his own?" Light frowned at the mike, but L's playing had reached a climactic level and Watari's answer was lost in it. "Could you repeat that?"

"Yes, I said that he will not stop once he has started playing like that. He'll play until he falls unconscious from lack of sleep or until his sugar cravings make playing impossible. Roughly three days in either case. What piece is he on?"

"I'm not sure…sounds like a Mozart."

"Ah, I was afraid of that. Yes, you must stop him. You're both two hours late for the morning meeting." Light's face paled.

"We're what?! We…I'll…We'll be right there."

"Shall I inform the Team that you are on your way?"

"Um…Yes, Do that. Talk to you again soon." He disconnected, staring in shock at the clock. How had time gone so quickly?! He admitted watching L play was fascinating…or rather, seeing L with an expression was fascinating. Especially a smile, but it had cost them both. Light had no idea what to tell the team, but a thousand horrible jokes at their expense were already streaming through his head. He jerked the chain.

L was snapped out of his reverie by a painful tug at his wrist, and the music ceased abruptly. Mozart's Violin Concerto 5, L's absolute favorite, died pitifully on the strings, and a rush of anger flew through him.

"Damn it Yagami, what do you want?!"

Light stood in shock…utter and complete shock. L's cheeks had a bright flush to them, and he had…cursed? He was angry? He had to be…he'd dropped all honorifics and was using his last name as well. Light stored this away, and tried to gather his thoughts. This morning, L seemed almost alive. He pointed wordlessly at the clock.

L's eyes went wide, and he snatched at the case, fumbling it open. Still gently, almost worshipfully, he laid his precious violin down, stored the bow in its silk sheath and tucked it in beside the body. He snapped it shut and dimly realized that Light was still in his pajamas. He motioned him over irritably and un-cuffed him long enough for the boy to throw a shirt on.

"Piano…"

"Excuse me, Light-kun?

"I thought you'd play piano…"

"Well, You were wrong, weren't you?" Light glared at the detective as he lashed his belt. He was in an unusually expressive mood. However, he wasn't talking in circles for once, and that was refreshing.

They hurried into the work room and found the rest of the team already slaving over the computers. L gave Light a harsh look, as though this was his fault, and then the mask was back in place. Matsuda hailed them from the back of the room and was promptly dismissed by both. They walked back and took their spots at the huge desk. Matsuda made some small inquiry as what happened…

All he got was Light mumbling something about L playing with his instrument.

He decided not to ask for clarification.


	2. Success

"You play well." Light gave the compliment grudgingly. They hadn't spoken at all to each other after L led the team through his report and then through the new information. Today's updates were minimal, almost nothing, in fact. L still spent the next few hours studying them, tying in every possible link with his previous information. He didn't have anything else to say, so he said what was bothering him. L didn't seem to have heard him the first time. Light repeated himself, a bit louder.

"You play well."

"I don't recall asking your opinion, Light-kun." L's gaze barely flickered in his direction as he compared a page to his screen, holding it in two fingers directly alongside the monitor. Candy rattled around the bowl in front of him as he fished out the blue ones first, eyes darting back and forth, comparing numbers.

"And You don't handle compliments well."

"I handle relevant compliments very well. If you had said that earlier, then I would have been glad of it. However, this information is completely useless to me right now, and only shows that you are not focusing on the task at hand. Work, please. "

Light stared at him, irritated beyond measure. He hadn't expected a bow and kissing of the feet, but a decent 'thank you' would have sufficed. He hadn't known L to be this rude before. He turned back to his own work for a moment. A bit later he decided to be contrary and keep pestering the detective.

"Why don't you play more often?" L exhaled slowly, almost a sigh and turned to face him.

"You're not going to drop this, are you Light-kun?" Light gave him his most winning smile, just to piss him off further. L narrowed his eyes.

"I don't play for obvious reasons. I enjoy music too much; it distracts me and renders my mind useless. I believe you witnessed this earlier."

"Yes, I did."

"It's you're fault we were late by the way…you're the one who turned off the alarm."

"A bit childish of you to bring that up, don't you think…" L's eyes closed and he turned back to the computer, determined to ignore him. He'd given into his desire to annoy Light, but his plan had apparently backfired. He was paying for it now. Light liked classical music too, enough that being woken by it hadn't bothered him much at all. Thinking on it now, L had acted childishly, he supposed. It was just the need to play had dulled his reasoning, made him irritable.

God help Light the day he ran out of Sugar…

Even so, the unexpected two hours of playing had done wonders for him. He was back at full capacity and planned on taking advantage of it. Tension he hadn't known was building up was released and, though his fingertips were sore, he felt better. However, his sudden desire to work made Light's curiosity all the more annoying.

L had been angry with him earlier, Light was sure of it. He watched the detective ignore him out of the corner of his eye, moving on to the red candies now that the blues were decimated. Perhaps he finally had some ammunition now…L's recent accusations were about to drive Light mad. If he could use this to annoy him in return, perhaps L would drop it for a while…Light caught himself and chuckled quietly. L? Drop the Kira case? The idea was laughable.

Lunch seemed to come early to the two of them, because they had started so late. The rest of the team filed out after taking Light's order and left them there. L continued to work while Light shamelessly took the time off. The case was crawling; even L had to admit that. Light hated pretending to work, because it only led to frustration and undue stress. If there was anything new to be done, either he or his genius partner would have found it by now. Light clicked around the internet for a moment or two then cleared his throat.

"So do you have to be playing, or is it just the music in general?" L paused, glancing at him. Light clicked again and a Mozart song began playing. L opened his mouth to protest, but paused, bringing a thumb to his lips as he tried to guess what piece it was. Light leaned back in his chair to watch him. L's hand stilled then grew lax in the candy dish. His eyes drifted shut as he listened, but he did not smile. He nibbled at his thumb, hummed along once for a few bars… and he was gone. Light was fascinated. He got up, rattled the chain between them, even carefully lifted L's hand and took the bowl of sweets away. L did nothing.

Eight minutes later, he cracked an eye at Light. He was watching him, an amused smile on his face as the piece came to a close and L seemed to come back to reality.

"Never mind, I guess. Experimental success…" L resisted the urge to throw the candy at him and instead popped about five into his mouth as he returned to his work. Chewing gave him an outlet for his irritation. The stoic, emotionless mask slid back into place like an iron gate swinging shut.

"Light-kun, if you do that again I will remove the speakers from our computer console."

"I think I just found a way to get you to take a break." Light smirked.

"Light-kun…" L started, and was interrupted.

"Oh, You won't. You need the speakers to listen to Watari's updates, and any calls you receive."

"Yes, but I can always limit your computer access to strictly document files."

That shut him up. He wouldn't do it of course…he was more likely to ditch the speakers. Restricting Light's internet usage would make L have to give him work to do. L would be in complete control of what he did and didn't, and while that was what silenced Light, it was the very reason the suggestion was ludicrous. He had too many other things to do without baby-sitting his suspect.

L returned to his screen and refrained from sighing. Light was very childlike himself, sometimes. Still, as he opened a file and began to scan through it for the third time, he couldn't help but wonder if Kira liked classical music as well…

Light had an idea. It was a sadistic, evil-spirited little prank, but Gods, he had to shower with this man. That alone made it worth it. It would be near impossible, but Light was sure he'd find a way.

Light was going to hide L's violin.


	3. Of Sleep and Toothpaste

AN: Okay, third Chapter in this little Story. Just a fun little prank by a sleepy Light. I plan to do much more with them in the future, this is just helping me get a feel of the boys before I go any further. L was awful touchy about his music in that last one wasn't he? O.o Reviews make me happy, be them good or no. How am I doing folks?

L was the only man in the world that took his laptop into the bathroom with him. It had to be the most annoying thing yet, Light would swear on it. Even now, while he was brushing his teeth, it was balanced precariously on the counter, mere inches from the running water. Light was too tired to say anything this time, and just leaned on the wall next to the sink. Five minutes later, he realized L had forgotten the toothbrush and was typing a reply to someone's email. Working…in the bathroom.

With another jolt of horror, Light realized that L was using his toothbrush. Cringing inwardly, he made a note to discreetly write Watari and ask for a new one. L probably didn't even care, but the thought of putting the contaminated brush back in his mouth just…horrified him. It'd probably taste like sugar. Light rolled his eyes and reminded him that he was kind of in the middle of something. L glanced at him, then at the mirror, and remembered, spitting and rinsing.

L was probably the only man that used children's toothpaste, too. The fruit flavored kind that was gentle on the teeth. L shut his laptop down and Light laughed to remember when he'd decided to try Light's. L was curious as kitten, and it didn't take two days for him to get brave enough to do it. He remembered the howl pain and disgust at the biting peppermint and stinging peroxide base. It was the highlight of that week. He'd immediately tried to throw the 'Toxic waste" out.

L glanced up at Light's laughter, and scowled when he pointed at the acid-like toothpaste. An involuntary shudder and he drug Light from the room. He briefly considered getting his violin out again, now that he knew Light didn't mind, but another glance at the boy decided him against it. Light's eyes were bleary, and he was already stifling a yawn. Besides…L was protective of his violin…he almost didn't want Light to even look at it. It already made him nervous that Light had shown such an interest in it.

Light pulled the covers back and went to get in, then paused.

"I fergot my watch, L." He pulled the detective back into the bathroom to look for it. "And you shouldn't use your computer in here…you'll break it or something. You left the water running too." Oh yes, Light Yagami was tired. He knelt and began to search the pockets of the pant he'd worn that day. L idly threw a palm full of water at him, catching him at the back of the head. Light gave him a look, but it was ignored. L went to bed and drug an ill-tempered Light after him.

The next morning, L woke before Light, as usual. Stretching, he reached for his fork and morning cake. Thick white icing almost an inch high, and this was L's morning rush in all it's glory. He closed his eyes happily as he went to lick the icing off the fork…

And got a mouth full of Light's Toothpaste.

"Son of a BITCH!!! LIGHT YAGAMI!"

And there was more dragging of a Light, who had woken long before L it seemed.


	4. Puppet Master

AN: Okay, time to get a little more serious. I realize that I've portrayed Light as a little silly, but please keep in mind that he thinks he is innocent. Therefore, most of his evil thoughts are the result of nothing but frustration. The L in this chapter is more like himself, and I hope Light is too. L gets his revenge, dunna worry. I'm really glad this story is being enjoyed. More musical goodness in the next chapter, promise...

Chapter 4, Puppet Master.

There were a few raised eyebrows when the boys finally walked in. Light was sporting a fashionable black eye, and L was nursing a split lip. All in all, it was to be expected however, with the two of them involuntarily bound to each other.

Light pointedly ignored his father's look, not wishing to explain that this morning's fight was the result of a childish prank on his part. Though L's face was unforgettable, and still brought a smirk to his lips, the cost of an over-extended wrist, multiple bruises, a splitting headache, and a shiner was a bit high to warrant a second attempt. Besides, L would undoubtedly sniff his food from now on.

L, himself, was still trying to get that horrid taste out of his mouth. Light's vanity was astounding, that he went through that twice daily. Pepsodent, an American brand of torture, happily being sold to poor unsuspecting families…While L was inclined to buy the company against his better judgment just so he could shut them down. Logically, it was a very bad idea, would cost him hundreds of thousands of dollars, but it sure sounded nice after scrubbing his tongue of that chemically altered sand. Even the blood tasted better than that…that…horrid, horrid tool of Vanity. If that was the cost of a white smile, than he had gained a minimal amount of respect for Light's self-control. He stirred a palm full of sugar cubes into his coffee as he pondered his toothpaste sacking schemes…Light's very Kira-like self control…

Light poured his own coffee left-handed and held the hot cup to his right wrist as he nursed it. He always drank his coffee black, believing that the natural caffeine offered less of a crash than when it was sweetened to syrup-like consistency. L's bland voice broke the hush of the Investigation Office.

"Wouldn't ice benefit your wrist better?" There was a hidden bite to the words that made Light grin.

"Too late now…it's worse if you switch once you've started a treatment."

"Well, I suppose you'll be suffering then. Light-kun is not inclined to drink coffee later in the day, and he has repeatedly refused cocoa. I will not waste my coffee beans so that you can nurse your…accident." Oh, full bite that time, and the team returned hurriedly to their work. Aizawa eyed the two, waiting for the intensity of the death glares to settle a bit before he stepped in and was killed. L reluctantly dropped Light's narrowed gaze…

"Yes, Aizawa-San?"

"The killings have continued, and seem to be settling into a set time frame again." He offered the report to L, who held it up page by page, as thought looking for invisible ink or something. He read silent before speaking to the rest of the team.

"The New Kira has settled into almost business-like hours…and his focus is shifting."

Light tensed at the "new" implication, but asked anyway. "Shifted how?"

"Not all of his victims are criminals. This one here…he was a prominent business man, I have an account with one of his banks. I suppose I should close it now…his company has been compromised." L handed the report to Light and began digging through the small fridge next to his side of the desk. He'd refused to touch the cake again, fearing it may have been entirely contaminated. He lifted out something in chocolate. It wasn't recognizable as anything else…resembling the love child of a Black Forest cake and a double fudge pudding of some kind. The scent made Light's stomach turn.

After the first few reassuring bites and sips of thick coffee, L was ready to begin work. He began issuing tasks to the Investigation Members between bites.

"Aizawa and Mogi-san, I would appreciate an interview with hospital that accepted the Bank Director, and a full statement from his co-workers. Yagami-san, would you please begin working through the company's recent transactions and business agreements?" He turned and pressed a button on the desk, and the gothic W of Watari's profile appeared on-screen. "Watari, please run a diagnostic on how the loss of this man will likely affect the company, and its interaction's with its colleagues. I want a list of who his death will benefit."

"I'll have it by two, L."

"Well, then, let's get started."

"What about me?" Matsuda raised a timid hand. He hated feeling useless, the poor man. L cocked his head, his eyes on the ceiling as he considered. Matsuda waited, watching the others go about their tasks, Mogi and Aizawa putting their coats on, the Chief heading off to the records room…

"Matsuda, didn't you schedule a photo-shoot for Miss Amane today?"

"I…Oh God, you're right! It starts in an hour and….oh, She's not even awake yet!!" Without another word he was gone. L called after the quickly closing door.

"Don't forget your false badge, Matsuda-san! Or your Belt!"

Light finished reading and turned back to L, setting the report aside.

"What does that leave us?"

"No, Light, That leaves you." L turned back to his computer and pulled up his massive email account and address book. He had to pull quite a few strings in his line of work, and he felt like a puppet-master as he scrolled through his list, selecting the relevant names carefully. Yagami would fish out all the latest contracts and such, but L knew he'd have trouble with the private ones. He'd do those himself, determined to mine out every hush-hush dealing this company had touched. He spoke as though he'd forgotten about Light entirely.

"That leaves you to start profiling." Light resisted groaning. He had a bad feeling when he asked the next question…

"Who?"

"Every employee this man ever dealt with face to face. I'll have Watari bring you dinner later."

Well…shit. He rubbed his aching wrist and refused to sigh. He really did not like this man. Not at all. Hated him sometimes, in fact. He'd also said 'dinner', not lunch…which meant there would be no lunch. Oh yes…all humor and residing good feelings from this mornings stunt were quite dead now…not even embers remained..

He pulled the file L just emailed him, the health and security records of a little over two thousand people…

No…No toothpaste was NOT worth this.


	5. A Plan Forms

Twenty Minutes later, the doors opened again to admit one Misa Amane. Light didn't have time to blink, much less brace himself before she was on him.

"SorryI'mrunninglate.Oh,godwhathappenedtoyoureye,I'llkillyouRyuuuzaki!Notime,justahugBYE!" And she was running back to the door, her gothic boots untied, and one pigtail up, the other in progress. "WISHMELUCKILOVEYOU!"

**AN-Translation at end of chapter, promise.**

"Bye L-san! Sorry guys!" From a flustered Matsuda and the door slid shut again, leaving the two investigators to wonder what just happened.

"She…rises quickly when put upon." L remarked dryly. Light just nodded dumbly and turned back around.

"She was wearing red underwear." Thumb between his teeth, L was still staring after the door.

"Why is this important?"

"She was wearing a blue shirt…it was…I…I have no clue. That's just all I registered when she bent over to hug you…that it didn't match." He shuddered, practically diving for the fridge and some cake to cleanse his mind. "Oh, god, I was just flashed, Light-kun…it was terrible. Cake…"

Light chuckled and continued writing to Watari.

(later in the day)

Thunderstorms hit the region about one that afternoon. The power went out in most of the downtown, leaving their building painfully bright…like a night-light in the darkened cityscape. L immediately called for a saving of all work, and a prompt shut-down.

When questioned, he explained it would be difficult to avoid attention when he was the only working light source in the Kanto area. People would wonder who had enough money to maintain so many generators.. He wanted everything down within the hour, and then the team could take the day off once Matsuda returned with Misa.

"How long would the generators last L?" Soichiro asked, watching L calmly sip his tea.

"Roughly four days, Yagami-san."

The team hardly blinked. They had no idea how L came by his money, but the fact that he was willing to invest in things like that was nothing new. He'd specifically designed this building for the Kira case, after all.

Misa returned and refused to see anyone because she was soaked to the bone. Both and L and Light were more than thankful for this. She went racing past the door as Matsuda stepped in, a flash of wet blond hair and black clothing and the threat that if Ryuuzaki watched her change, she'd murder him in his sleep. She seemed oblivious to the fact that the power would soon be gone any way, only the minimal required for security, L was hard pressed not to embarrass her. Still, he pondered whether he should intercept the feed from the cameras when he redirected the information to his laptop.

"Well, Gentleman, we'll call it a day then. See you all in the morning."

_Misa…of course. Misa hates thunderstorms._ Light made a note to look at the next weather report L glossed through.

(Later that night)

L decided to play that night. He didn't announce it, just reached beneath the bed and pulled the case out. Light was curling up with a book, feeling better after his first shower in two days. Their mornings had been too hectic to allow his usual wake-up shower lately. Watari had accepted his request, and he found an entire package of disposable toothbrushes in the drawer beneath the sink. L had cocked his head and said nothing, knowing exactly why they were there. Of course, he hadn't planned on touching Light's toothbrush again, especially after his second taste of that…filth, Light called toothpaste. Never, ever again. It'd probably taste like Pepsodent. He didn't bother to tell Light that his efforts were pointless though, allowing him this little trifle. He'd made a note to dip them all in sugar water before they were gone though.

Light barely glanced at him when he set the case on the bed. L rolled his eyes to ceiling, considering for a moment before he spoke.

" Light-kun, please set the alarm for an hour from the present time." Light merely nodded and fixed the clock. After his own slip in attention, he didn't trust himself not to do so again. Suddenly, he frowned.

" L, I have a question." L raised an eyebrow to show he was paying attention as he lifted the instrument from its silk-lined bed and rested it across his knees.

"If you're about to render yourself basically unconscious, aren't the handcuffs a bit redundant? You'll have no idea what I'm doing…"

"On the contrary, there is scarce an inch of this building that is not under surveillance, Light-kun. Video, audio, and body heat are constantly being recorded."

"Wait… then why do you un-cuff me to shower?" Light was sure he couldn't see through the frosted glass of the stall, that'd be nearly impossible. "Isn't that a fairly protected spot?"

"Perhaps you misunderstood the 'Scarce an inch' part of my last statement, Light-kun."

So…he'd been video-taping the shower. Son of a bitch…the thought made Light blush, staring very intently at his book. L took out the bow and lifted the violin to his chin.

"You understand my reasoning, don't you? And don't worry, I am not embarrassed by such frivolous things as masturbation."

"L…start playing before I cause you physical damage."

"Ah yes...Beethoven tonight, I think."

AN - Translation of Misa's rambling. "Sorry, I'm running late. Just time for a hug. Oh God, what happened to your eye, Light?! I'll kill Ryuuzaki! No time, gotta run, bye. Wish me luck, I love you." Or somfin to this effect...

Whoo, the plot thickens. > This is going really quickly, but don't worry, I have no idea how long this is going to be. I'll probably write until I run out of ideas. I LOVE the first scene and the last few lines of this chapter, I'm sorry. Also, I'm my own personal grammar Nazi, so any mistakes you find will likely be spotted by me and fixed at some point in time. Help is welcome though.


	6. Sleepy

AN- Hello again, and thank you all for coming back to read more! Bit of Misa in this chapter, but let me explain something. Contrary to popular belief, I don't think Misa is stupid. Not at all. Clingy? Yes. Annoying? Hallelujah and Amen. But...She's not stupid. She acts that way because it's cute, and it sells, and she's depended on being cute to survive, literally. She's a model. If she's not attractive, she's nothing. Thus, my Misa will still be playful, cutesy, oh-mi-god-shoot-her MisaMisa...but she'll be intelligent. So will Matsuda, too.

And anyway, she's vital to my story, so tolerate her, please.

Disclaimer: I don't own that poisonous toothpaste. Colgate, baby! Woot!

Sleepy.

Light had been beyond furious at the detective when he found out the man was watching him shower. He'd never participated in any group sports, and even so the idea of a group shower disgusted him. He felt like L had more than taped him, he felt he was crawling into the stall with him. In a moment of rage, he very nearly snatched the bow from his fingers and snapped it over his knee.

It's hard to sit next to someone you're angry with, especially when they don't know you exist at the moment. Light wanted to punch him from the other direction so that his lip would split again. He wanted to pluck his hair out one strand at a time as he played and let him come out of his trance bald. Eventually, he consoled himself with the fact that he took very good care of his body and wasn't all that ashamed of it. He tried to focus on his book, but forcing himself to calm down only gave him a headache. His elevated heartbeat was making his black eye throb too…

Suddenly the door slid open. Light jumped up, ready to…well…to do something, anyway. It'd be hard to fight dragging a grown man who was trying to protect a violin, Light was sure of it. It was only Misa, looking frightened and holding a stuffed rabbit.

"Light…Can Misa Misa sit you two for a while? Just until the thunder passes, I promise. Misa just hates being alone when it storms." She stepped in quietly when he nodded and moved to sit against L's pillows. She never blinked at the playing musician, just smiled and snuggled her bunny closer. Thankfully, she only rested an hand on Light's arm as he read, instead of trying to cuddle.

"It doesn't surprise you?" Light gestured at the detective at her feet. She shook her head, smiling gently to her herself.

"No…I knew. MisaMisa's mother used to play too. She used to say that people fell in love with their violins after a while. I recognized the calluses on his fingers. He has a nice smile…and he's very, very good. Oh well, he's a genius, just like my Light!" She grinned at him and moved a few inches closer, linking their arms. She frowned at his black eye.

"Why were you two fighting." Light told her, and she stifled a giggle. "Ooooh, Light, that was so MEAN! I almost think you deserved it…of course, no one should ever hit you. You're just too beautiful."

Light decided to take this moment to put his plan into effect. "Misa…are you still mad at Ryuuzaki-san?"

She nodded, narrowing her eyes slightly at the man sitting by her feet.

"How would you like to pull a little prank on him?" Misa looked up wide-eyed, and a grin slowly spread on her face. "Anything for my Light!"

An hour later, L was shaken out of his trance as agreed upon. He opened his eyes but didn't stop playing.

"Are you Conscious?"

"Yes, Light-kun…just allow me to finish this section." The final few bars rang, and he lowered the violin, rolling his shoulders. He jumped when he suddenly spotted Misa curled up on his pillow. She'd fallen asleep listening to the music and Light's breathing as he read.

"Is this some kind of apology present, Light-kun?" Light gave him a look and shook his head, glancing at the girl sleeping next to him.

"She just got scared. She's actually not so bad when she's sleepy…much calmer." Misa still annoyed him to no end, but this side of her was much more tolerable.

L frowned as he packed his treasure away. He should have invited her sooner, instead of expecting her to brave the storm alone in an unfamiliar place. The thoughts of her interrogation arose, and his guilt dimmed somewhat. She'd braved through worse before.

"So how you propose we deal with her now, Light-kun? While this bed would accommodate the three of us, I hesitate to suggest it with the chain. Perhaps you could carry her?" Light rolled his eyes and looked at her again.

"Yeah…I guess that will work. You'll open the doors?" L nodded and Light marked his page. He set it aside and stood, stretching. L moved off to Light's side, watching as he awkwardly gathered the sleeping model into his arms. "Don't forger her Rabbit, Light-kun…she might wake without it."

Light hissed through his teeth as her weight shifted and put pressure on his hurt wrist. "You get it L; I'm trying not to drop her."

The detective nodded and picked the stuffed animal up between his thumb and forefinger, then led the way out of the room. The rabbit smelled of her perfume and was obviously very old. This one wasn't a fan-gift, he was sure of it. He glanced over his shoulder at Light, and marveled at how easily he carried her. Then again, he had a younger sister, so this probably wasn't all that uncommon. They took the elevator to her floor, and Light crouched down to support her weight across his knees. His wrist had to be aching but L felt no guilt at all. Damn toothpaste…

They made it back to their room and prepared for bed. Misa was tucked in and slept on, but L still locked he in for the night. Callous, he knew, but necessary. He didn't like the idea of her wandering the building at night, whether she could get to anything or not. Light re-set the alarm and smiled to himself. He only had a bit longer to wait.

L woke first, and made sure of it this time. There was a hot cup of tea on his bed stand, and a note from Watari that the power was still out in their section of the city. They expected to have it back up by eleven. L stirred the provided extra sugar into his cup and glanced over a Light's clock… it was only six.

He got up took a few steps to the bathroom. The chain stretched tight, but Light rolled over and extended his arm in his sleep. A good habit, L decided, because it allowed him to reach the mini fridge by his nightstand when he got hungry during the night. The chain was still taut, but not enough to cause discomfort, and the six feet allowed just enough room for him to reach the sink.

He looked at his cup and back and Light. His cup…and back at Light. One hand eased the drawer open and scooped up the new toothbrushes there. He leaned back around the door frame, watching his suspect, and then shoved their heads into his tea, viciously stirring the syrupy drink with them. Tea sloshed over the side the cup and onto his hand, but he ignored it, thinking of Toothpaste, that Damn TOOTHPASTE. After a moment, he pulled them out and slung his hand about to shake the excess off. He then slowly put them back, peering at Light again.

Nothing.

L grinned and brushed his teeth.

Light himself woke to an absolute mess. There was toothpaste everywhere, on his neck, in his hair. He'd forgotten about hiding it under his pillow for his joke. He woke cussing and flew over L to the bathroom, dragging him all the way to the shower. L watched in horror as his morning cake, a simply lovely slice of lemon with chocolate icing, flew out of his hands and hit the doorframe in passing.

A Moment later, L was leaning on the wall next to the shower stall, nibbling his thumb as he gazed mournfully after his cake.

"A most unfortunate lack of planning, Light-kun. Next time, think your immature jokes through, yes?"

Light, scowling, opened the stall door and sprayed him full in the face with the nozzle.


	7. Conversations

AN- Okay, just a tiny bit of Fluff here. Pointless conversation, but I couldn't resist messing with my Matsuda-chan. Clumsy fool, I love him. Let's see how long until Matsuda's brain asplodes...

Matsuda was typing merrily along when L and Light started arguing. They were trying to be discreet about it, he was sure, and so he didn't call attention to them, just moved all breakables from the vicinity in the event that it turned physical. He tried hard not to listen, he really did, but they raised their voices occasionally.

"Not my fault you hurt your wrist, Light-kun…"

"Well, if you hadn't gone so fast…"

"That is hardly my fault considering the circumstances."

"Yeah Right."

"I just did what I do every morning, and you ruined it. Besides my wrist hurts now too."

Matsuda paused, glancing over his shoulder at the pair.

"And what did you do, L? It tasted funny this morning…"

"I didn't do anything…besides yours always tastes horrible. Sugar makes everything better."

Matsuda felt a blush creep across his cheeks. What in Gods name were they…

"And anyway, you didn't have to spray me this morning in the shower. That was uncalled for."

"Well, if you hadn't made an ass of yourself…"

"That's still no reason for you to flash me. My hair is still wet."

"…mumblemumble…"

"I never said I enjoyed watching it Light-kun."

"… (some unintelligible growl)…"

"That was uncalled for, Yagami-kun."

Matsuda was staring now…he couldn't help it. It was impossible. With a girl like Misa, how could Light be…gay?

Light smirked at the use of his last name. He'd a hit a sore spot that time. He personally had never considered masturbating to music, but the sudden uncomfortable silence from L was entirely too entertaining. Suddenly he looked up and saw Matsuda's expression. Realization was like a hammer to his stomach at the shock there…

"No…No Matsuda, we were talking about Toothpaste!" Matsuda's mouth fell open. He wasn't stupid, and that was lame even to him! Light went a scarlet color, yanking L around…

"Ryuuzaki, tell him!"

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Light-kun. You should be working." Came the lofty reply...

A few moments of Light's sputtering and Matsuda tactfully turned back to his desk. The team continued working while Light plotted a few new ways to kill the detective. Or better yet, embarrass him.

AN- Aiyah, I love writing these guys. Nothing like a good innuendo to put you in a writing mood. Next chapter will be up before I go to bed, and I promise musical Hilarity! And yes...they really were talking about Toothpaste. Oh god, I can't wait to write the next part...I has an Idea, cocoa, and a quiet house! Stay tuned!


	8. Ah, Mozart

AN- Yay Chapter eight! Okay, wow, this was fun to write. But I must say this! As of right now, L and Light have no attraction to each other what so ever. So you may wonder why this chapter happened. I have an answer. Light is a teenager. And, it's a universal rule that Teenagers like to mess with people's heads. Think about it. Always, constantly. It's a power-trip, and power is something Light is denied once he is cuffed, so...

Yeah, shit happens. Nothing bad, just a fetish comes to Light (whoo pun!), and he messes with L a bit. This, my dears, is called a musical addiction. Ehehehehe, squirm L! Possibly more tomorrow, definitely more Monday! Thanks for sticking with me. -Mikanis

Ah, Mozart...

Light watched everyone file out for lunch before whirling around to glare at L.

"What the hell was that about? Matsuda thinks I'm some kind of pervert now, and YOU'RE the one watching ME shower!"

"Light-kun, I must remind you that you flashed me this morning at your own expense. At least Misa did it on accident."

Light returned to his computer with a growl, still incensed. _Let's see how low you go, Ryuuzaki…_ He began clicking around the internet until he found what he wanted.

"Light-kun, what are you doing?" L rolled his chair closer and tried to peer at the screen. Light pushed him away with his foot and clicked again. Mozart drifted from the speakers, and L narrowed his eyes.

"Light-kun this not…acceptable…is that the March?" His attention was drawn unerringly to nothing, and he leaned back in his chair, nodding to himself. Light waited until he was fully under (Ha, he thought, like a surgery patient), and then began clicking through the Mozart fan site. It had clips from dozens of his works.

L sat, thumb at his lips, and listened with rapt attention. The constant change in song was annoying, but not enough to focus on it. The music was in his blood now, and he was far, far away, lost in a place that mortals couldn't touch, where crime and the world's darkness faded into musical bliss. Then one stuck out in particular, no not that one, not right now…

"Oh…" Light glanced at him, surprised he'd even heard it, and paused. His eyes drifted open as his chin came to rest on his knees. "Don't play this one."

"Ah, so this is it…Confutatis and Lacrimosa, of Mozart's Requiem."

"Light-kun, don't play it." But it was already starting, a powerful choral piece, a duet of angels and demons…

"Mozart's Death Serenade. Requiem in D minor…Kinky, L." Light read from the information above the clips. He glanced again, and L's eyes were closed and he was…_purring?_ Light turned down the music a notch to confirm that and yes, yes L, the Greatest Detective in the World was purring like a content kitten.

The music suddenly shifted tempo into something slower, and Light frowned. L toes flexed on his chair and Light glanced between him and the screen. L seemed to be relaxing. He thought for minute. Then he played the two clips in reverse order. Lacrimosa first…followed by Confutatis.

The change was remarkable. The slow pace of Lacrimosa, powerfully building up, left L to wrap his arms around his knees and hide his face as he mouthed the words. He loved this song…he loved, this, song. It was akin to an opiate in his system...it just felt good, each note a stroke of pleasure down his spine. It was his song, he felt, it suited everything about him matched every aspect of his life, from the orphanage to where he was now. It marked his development as a person, from child to master-mind Detective, and it was his. And Light, his only equal, the only person in the world that was capable of discovering this fetish, and that it should be played backwards… was handcuffed to him. For the first time since the investigation, L wondered if this had been a good idea. Did he have subconscious urge to cause himself pain? No, this was required to clear Light's name. Yes, it was, and Light was just a manipulative teenager that liked control.

Oh god, Confutatis was starting. The change in tempo went straight to L's blood like a drug, setting his heart pounding, and oh this song… He couldn't listen to this, he couldn't. He resisted the urge to squirm in his chair. Not with Light, not now, not ever, no…

Light was thrown off balance when the detective lunged at him, hurling his chair backwards. Light toppled to the floor, and L grabbed at the mouse, trying to turn off that blessed, cursed, music.

"Turn it OFF, Yagami-kun!" And…Light laughed at him, mostly from surprise. He picked himself up as L started clicking around the screen desperately trying to close every window, trying to cut the song short. Stunned, Light realized even as he was doing this, the detective was mouthing the Latin words of the choir.

"I can't, I just downloaded it." He hadn't really thought about what he was saying until L turned to stare at him in horror. The music reached its peak and damn if L didn't kick. All the sexual tension in his body from listening to this song, his song, seemed to unwind at once, and he needed to DO something. Fighting is notorious for allowing the release of all tensions and that was all the logic L's flustered brain needed. He kicked, and caught Light squarely across the jaw.

He stumbled back, shocked, and watched as L grabbed the nearest speaker and _ripped_ it from the console, throwing it down. He got up and tried to pull the detective away, and got a bony elbow in the gut. Finally angry, Light decided to fight back…

And completely forgot about his wrist. With a yelp of pain, his fist cracked across the detective's mouth, and he felt his injured lips split beneath his knuckles even as his wrist caught fire. That seemed to bring some sense back to the detective, however, and instead of destroying another speaker, he reached over and pressed the power button on the main box. The computer shut down, the music stopped, and L collapsed into the chair, his arms crossed on his knees and his face buried in them. Light was still trying to get his air back, a hand palming the sharp point of pain beneath his ribs.

That was the first time L had ever started a fight. Even when he drug Light across the room, Light had thrown the first punch. He watched as the detective calmed himself, and he thought for a brief second, that L was crying. Then a small chuckled sounded, and Light stared, even more dumbfounded…Laughing?

L…laughing?

And he was. L sat up and laughed, drawing his knees up into his chest and trying to muffle it. He glanced at Light, his cheeks bright, and he seemed almost childlike as he hid his face again. It was infectious, Soon, Light was laughing too. The entire situation was ludicrous. L wiped tears from eyes and blood from his chin, reaching down and picking the speaker up by it's snapped cord…"Wow."

"Yeah…I was worried my head was next for a minute there."

L chuckled and reached over to hit the intercom. "Watari, I've damaged some equipment. Don't bother replacing it; just remove the speakers from our console for now." Light frowned.

"You need those, though…"

"I'll just change the permission settings so that you can't access sound files. You know, you're entirely too curious, Light Yagami. I don't like you much at all."

"I owed you one for the shower bomb."

"Ah well…You're still the only friend I have, so I suppose I'll have to keep you." L turned to him, suddenly serious. "Please don't ever mock me like that again, Light-kun. I understand that your lack of control in this situation has left you frustrated, but you did agree to my terms, after all. You don't have to act kind, or even respectful, but I must ask that you not abuse me thusly. The next time, you might find those shower tapes in the morning debriefing."

Light frowned…then chuckled, imitating one of his old professors. "And here we have the college student, in his natural habitat…"

Light dropped the subject. He'd learned something valuable today. The longer he stayed in the Detective's presence, the more he learned about how to make him angry. It was amusing to say the least. He couldn't wait until the next storm.

Meanwhile, L decided to go through and delete every piece of music he had saved. L had never given nor received much attention as a child, and his music was important to him. No one else had ever figured it out, and the fact that Light had done so within a few weeks was unnerving. Still, he did suggest this, and he would not be the first to back out. However, now, more than ever, he refused to trust Light. He felt like Kira was staring over his shoulder.


	9. Torture

AN- Wow, this was...interesting to write, lemme tell ya. Pure L in this chapter folks, as our favorite detective...indulges his addictions. I felt the need to explain them more in depth, and here you go, the result of too much caffeine and no sleep. O.o

Um...this is...intense. I canna describe it otherwise. So yes, a gift to my readers, a little one-on-one time with L. Or something...

In truth, I just wanted you to fully understand the magnitude of what music does to him, I guess. Miss Lily-Knotwise hit the nail on the head when she described it. This ones for you!

Torture.

L glanced at the sleeping figure next to him and nibbled at his thumb. The laptop was balanced on his legs as he reclined against his pillows. He was stretched out for the first time in a while, and while it caused an uncomfortable pressure in some places, it relieved other tensions as well. Also, he couldn't use the computer with his knees glued to his chin…

He was trying to work, reviewing the reports Watari and the rest of the team had been writing over the last few days. His deductions had been accurate for all of them, but it was good to see that the team followed his line of thinking. The investigation was finally moving forward again.

He'd been trying to ignore it all day. He truly had. But the truth was, it'd been years since he last heard his song like that, played the way he liked it, just for him. Two years…at least. Light had thankfully dropped the matter, though L hadn't exactly expected him to announce it to the team, it was nice to see it written off once the teen's curiosity was satisfied. Not so for L. He glanced at the boy again, biting hard on his thumb. This was probably a bad idea. A very bad Idea. But it couldn't be worse than listening to that song…his song…in brief catches and quiet whispers in the back of his mind all day.

He saved his files and shut down the case. Instead…he pulled up his music files. He removed his thumb from his teeth long enough to fish a pair of headphones out of the drawer in his nightstand. His fingers trembled ever so slightly, but he finally got them plugged in.

Lacrimosa. Mozart's Requiem. Playlist. Confutatis. Mozart's Requiem. Playlist. Song Option, repeat.

Resting the computer in his lap, he laced his fingers behind his head, careful of the chain, and closed his eyes.

His song.

Violins. Soft, light, like bird's wings, lifting the song. The voices came, a choral ensemble to rival the deities. He felt himself drift, slowly falling deeper into the song as it pulled him in. A small rise, like a tide coming in and he knew he was gone, feeling himself rise too, fully victim to the music drifting through his mind. A small rest, and his heart has picked up. Another rise, drawing him higher, and he inhales, shivering…

The violins take over the harmony again, light, taunting, and then the voices are high, full, alive…L resists the urge to move. It wouldn't be worth waking Light, he won't give him that victory…

God the voices go silent, leaving the violins to carry, quiet. The drums, sparse and heavy, and he feels himself rising, his skin crawling with the urge to move, to _touch._ And the voices hold, drawing it out, and it's over, but no…it can't be…

Oh God, Confutatis…

The drums are back, merciless for the first few measures, and his hands clench, tightening into his hair in his effort to stay still, to stay _quiet._ God, and L is not a religious man, but he prays now, he listens. He hears, he feels, and he trembles. The Latin slows, dropping into a sinful melody, sung by Satan himself, and then it stops…

Silence…

And it begins again, the drums sending tremors through his very soul, and the violins too, dancing like fire. The voices are strong, defiant, loud, God they're so loud…and L is curling up over keyboard, leaning forward, eyes closed, lips parted, he can hear them. And they're gone…the demons shrinking before the soprano angels, and then the violins…the violins…come back to taunt him. The quiet voices come back, leaving him longing, his breath heavy as they return gentle, as though in apology for their earlier vehemence…

And Silence…

And Christ, here we go again. Loud, strong, drums and fires, his violins, his fire…Demonic Latin chanting him into radiant eternity, and he damn, he can't wait. A quiet moan, and the quiet, the quiet…the violins, their tones gentle, stroking, tending his burns…the angels come, singing the insult away, soothing the brandy that was his blood…

And Silence…

And drums, and no, no he can't, he can't take this anymore. He feels the fire, his drug, his song, in his blood, and damn it's almost enough…he's so close. His hands grip the sides of the laptop, white at the knuckles, restraining himself with every ounce of strength he can manage, but God, how he _needs…_how he _wants…_

NO!

He ripped the headphones from his ears before he embarrassed himself. Leaning back, his heart frantic, and the laptop was suddenly in a very uncomfortable spot, but he didn't trust himself to move it, not yet. Panting, he glanced at Light, wondering how he could bloody sleep when it was so damn HOT in here…

A moment passed, and L stopped the music. The tiny voices coming from the headphones on his stomach were too inviting for him tolerate right now. Another moment, and he could think again, the desire leaving his body like an ebbing tide, dwindling to an ember. No, he hadn't finished, but L didn't really need to…sometimes the exquisite torture was enough to satisfy him for a while. He shut the laptop down and turned on his stomach, burying his face in his pillow and his…problem, in the bed. Too much, he thought, too long. As he drifted into a fitful sleep, L thought about what an evil man Mozart really was.

AN- Heh...it was so damn HOT in here...

No, L, that's just you. To clear up any confusion, he put Confutatis on repeat, not both.


	10. Pilfered!

AN- Bum bum BUM. And Light implements the plan that might just kill him. It's surprisingly simple, but then, he's doing this for the reaction, not so that he can actually steal the violin. Remember, He wants to be caught. Thus the audio and camera and such. The next few are for Hammer-chan, my first reviewer.

Pilfered. (stolen)

Light was amazed, and disgusted. He'd been awake, the tiny voices from the headphones just audible. He was a light sleeper, and he was surprised that L's panting hadn't woken him earlier. Listening, he was almost scared to open his eyes, not wanting to see what the detective might be doing. However, when he did crack an eye, both the detectives hands were behind his head, present and accounted for.

It was amazing, and very, very strange to be a bystander at this private concert. Light had never known music could affect a man in such a manner, though his earlier demonstration had hinted at it. So he watched; fascination and a sick feeling dancing unpleasantly in his stomach. Had it been anyone but L, he might have found it arousing…but…it was L. L did not arouse him, not in the slightest. Towards the end of the second repetition of Confutatis, Light was fairly sure that if he reached over and nudged the laptop, L would scream. The thought was amusing. He suddenly thought about the violin…

In the morning…it had to be this morning. The storms weren't dependable, and all of Misa's annoying adoration proved that she was. L was up late tonight…it had to be close to two in the morning…

He'd sleep until a few moments before the alarm went off, and expect Light to do the same. He'd never sleep until the alarm, because he found it unbearably annoying, and it put him in a dismal mood to start the day. Personally, Light thought it was because he just couldn't shut his powerful mind down completely. In fact, Light wondered if he ever really slept sometimes. He'd tried shutting the alarm off before it buzzed and then waking Light himself…but after a few elbows to the face and a failed strangulation attempt, he decided to let the alarm do the work. Light did not like people touching him as he slept.

Light also had the gift of being able to fall asleep when he wanted and sleep for however long he wanted. He could wake up without an alarm if he needed to. He usually did, because he found it as annoying as L, but the two of them kept strange hours while working on the case. It was better to have a back up plan when the threat of passing out before you even make it to the bed became an everyday ordeal.

So, Light decided to wake up at five. That being determined, he shut his eyes, blocked out the detective ( who was now shutting his computer down and trying to calm himself enough to sleep), and drifted back in his dreamless rest.

X-X-X-X-X

At roughly five-ten, Light Yagami opened his eyes, and sat up before he could fall asleep again. He could wake whenever he wanted, but if he didn't move, he'd often go right back to sleep. A movement from the corner of his eye, and Watari was setting L's morning cake on the dresser. He nodded a silent greeting, careful not to expose too much of his face. Light respectfully looked away...this man was L's only companion, and Light knew what he must think of him. The man wouldn't take any chances. When Light looked up again, he was gone. The man was so quiet it was scary. No sixty year old man should be that nimble…

Light shook his head and reached for his phone. If Watari was tending to L's breakfast then he'd done his rounds about the building, and was headed back to his office to process the new updates. If he'd made his rounds, then both their door and Misa's door was unlocked. Light glanced at L again; to be sure he was asleep. He was, curled up like a cat, one hand cradled to his chest, the other fisting the blankets to his chin. He fiddled with the cell phone for a minute. L had allowed texting as the only form of communication between Misa and Light during work hours, but Light had never actually responded to any of them before the last few days. Recently, however, he'd spent a long time painstakingly hiding his messages, though where the inspiration for this tactic came from, he wasn't sure. He just knew how to do it, and that it worked. "It shuts her up when I write back. It's just frustrating, having to type out every letter by number.", he'd told L when the detective had asked why the sudden urge to reply. In reality, he wasn't slow at texting, but faking it had allowed more time to type longer messages. It had earned him a percentage quip from L, though...something about how his stalling and avoiding work made him seem even more guilty.

A moment later, a very sleepy Misa opened the door. Her hair was pulled back into one bushy pony-tail and messy from sleep, and her face clear of make-up. She held an enormous stuffed bear. For a moment, Light almost thought she was pretty. Almost.

With a small smile, she walked over, silent in her socks, and slid L's violin from under the bed. She held it close to her chest, arranged the bear over it, and Light mouthed for her to hide it in her room. She gave him a look that said she wasn't stupid, and left just as quietly as she had come.

Light glanced at L.

He gave them until maybe Lunch…maybe.

X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X

Misa slid back into her own bed with her bear, and pulled the covers up. Mr. Crumb, so named because she used to 'feed' him crumbs when she was younger, was big enough to completely cover the violin case. Thinking no more about it, she went back to sleep.

Only a man would ask her to get up at five in the bloody morning.


	11. Oh, Misa

Misa was sitting alone in her room, again. In her bathroom, to be specific. Ryuuzaki promised her there were no cameras in the bathroom, and she reluctantly believed him. Still, as she climbed out of the bath, she modestly wrapped a towel around herself before letting the water out. Sitting on the edge of the tub she began to dry towel dry her hair. Mr. Crumb sat on the closed toilet. The old man…Watari…he often came in and gathered her laundry and dishes while she was in the bath. She'd brought the violin into the bathroom with her to avoid being caught. It sat across the counter now.

Sighing, she stood and crossed to it, thinking of her mother. She'd just started teaching Misa to play when…well, when. She could play the scales, and that was it. She opened the case and looked at the instrument. L was very obviously in love with his violin…it was in amazing condition. She ran her fingers lovingly over the strings, thinking back to times spent at her mother's knee, listening to glorious music…

X-X-X-X-X-X

L eyes were glued to the screen as he replayed the clip again. And again. And again.

The blood slowly drained from his face.

"Light-kun, would you care to explain this?

X-X-X-X-X-X

Misa's parents had been murdered when she was very young. Their murderer had been killed by Kira. Justice served after years of being denied because of people with weakness in their hearts.

Misa was completely lost in her reverie when L's frantic voice came over in the intercom, frighteningly loud in the small bathroom.

"MISS AMANE, PLEASE DON'T MOVE!"

Misa yelped, turning to look at the ceiling and dropping her towel. The water puddle on the floor protested the sudden movement. With another small cry, her ankle turned beneath her, and she felt herself falling. The marble counter-top ran along her newly-bared side and dug in, the scratch deep and painful. Her elbow slammed down in an effort to catch herself, and Misa's world went quiet for a moment as the sound of splintering wood filled the bathroom.

X-X-X-X-X-X

Light had never seen L this…angry. Or scared. He'd never seen L run; he'd never known the sheer power the small man possessed. L had to have been going easy on him when they fought, because when he took off this time, the cuff dragging Light actually bit into him hard enough to draw blood. He felt as though his wrist were broken. L completely ignored the elevator in favor of the stairs, and Light stumbled up after him. The Greatest Detective in the World was taking no prisoners, however, and Light was sure his shins would have stripes on them from the way he was pulled off balance. Light was starting to feel a bit apprehensive about this.

X-X-X-X-X-X

Misa screamed in earnest when the splinters broke her fragile skin, metallic accent cutting deep. The heavy wooden case followed her down and hit the crown of her head. A tiny cut formed from the impact, and Misa didn't know what else to do but cry. Her ankle was sprained, possibly broken, her side hurt, her arm was bleeding badly, L's beautiful violin was shattered, and there was a trickle of blood in the water dripping from her hair now. Misa Amane just cried, surprised and hurt, and feeling more upset than she ever had before.

"Oh…my…god…"

X-X-X-X-X-X

L finally reached Misa's suite, two flights of stairs later, and opened the door carefully, hands shaking.

"Miss Amane?"

"Help…oh please help me, I'm so sorry…"

Light felt his heart crawl into his stomach. Oh no…

AN- Oh no indeed, my son. Oh no, indeed. -nods sagely-


	12. Punishment

L stayed long enough for Watari to arrive, the lower half of his face carefully hidden behind some kind of handkerchief, before he moved. They'd moved Misa to the bed, but she'd refused to let them touch her again. In L's hand was the neck of his beloved violin…its body shattered, the strings stained with blood. Her arm was in bad condition, but her ankle wasn't broken. The others were just scratches. It would put a damper on her work for the next few months, but with Watari at her side, they would heal into nothing. Watari's grandfatherly patience and effort would make sure that she would continue to model…

No sooner had the man touched her, than L was moving. Out, into the hallway, no longer running, but walking…just walking. Light cradled his bleeding wrist to his chest, and followed silently. It'd taken longer than expected for L to review the footage…they'd worked straight through lunch. He wasn't sure what was coming. He wasn't sure he'd live through it. The thought of L killing him brought a wry smile to his lips for a moment…then the sound of the swinging fragments of the violin wiped it away. He'd made a mistake. Light had made one of the first major mistakes of his life. He'd never gone to school so much as ran through it. He was a prodigy, a genius, and had spent the majority of his life in flawless perfection, with devoted parents, a loving sister, and his every whim catered to by either said family, or by his own skills.

Now, following behind this frail, quiet, enigma of a man, Light for the first time saw himself for what he truly was…

Spoiled.

He was a commanding nature, a forceful personality, and had never once been told he could not do something. He'd never once had to rely on someone else, he'd used those around him to benefit himself. He still wasn't entirely sure that he was wrong to do so.

His wrist ached. He hadn't dared bring up his tiny scratches in light of Misa's arm…it was hard to see the damage under all of the blood. But he'd watched her cry, watched her apologize to 'Ryuuzaki-san' until she sobbed so hard she could no longer speak. Really, he hadn't been able to figure out how she'd manage to hurt herself so badly in the bathroom. When he'd glanced in and saw the water on the floor, he was surprised to see a bear sitting on the toilet, watching him. Perhaps that was when he'd first felt guilt, true guilt, in his life.

Light didn't like the feeling.

L was heading up stairs now, his feet silent, and the only sound was the muted scratching of his beautiful violin. It hadn't snapped in half, but it held together just barely at the sides. Her elbow had gone straight through, the force sliding it out of the silk lining and into the air before catching the counter and having a counterbalance. Misa's elbow was trapped, and any movement she made only forced more splinters into her skin. She was a bloody mess when they'd found her. Surprisingly, she wasn't upset that she'd been injured and faced the prospect of a career ruining scar…

She was upset because of L's violin.

It reminded her of her mother, Light remembered. It had almost been humorous, at first, to know that she was more upset about the instrument than Light. Of course, Light would never have laughed in the face of her injury, but the weight of the situation never dawned on him until the bear. She'd done it on his behalf after all.

Hilarious…Light was given his first taste of guilt by a stuffed animal.

L reached the top of the stairs and fumbled in his pocket. Finding his key ring, he managed to get the door open, and Light was surprised when a cool breeze of night air came down the step to him. L stepped outside, and waited. Light followed, staring out at the rooftop, and beyond, into an unadulterated view of the heavens. Clear skies, and the stars were out, and very faint in the light of Tokyo. It didn't fit, it should be raining, the wind should be howling…

Light heard the door shut and the keys rattle. He turned, and yes, L had locked them onto the roof. He approached and Light stood a little straighter, waiting for the first blow. Instead, L reached forward and unlocked the cuff about his wrist. He undid his own and hung the chain over the door knob. He still hadn't spoken, hadn't met Light's eyes.

It was a beautiful night. L leaned on the half-wall at the edge of the building and looked out over the city. Light didn't know what to say, but he wouldn't insult the detective by attempting some sort of apology. He started to take a step, to stand next to him, share his silence…

"Don't move. Don't…move." The order was quiet, and he was surprised he'd heard it. He put his foot back down. Blood dripped from his injured wrist, down, off his fingertips. He felt the building swaying beneath him, the breeze in his hair, and he stared at the detective's back. They went a long time without moving. Light turned his eyes to the sky, feeling the warring emotions in his chest. The urge to laugh at this freak of man, because it was, up until the accident, a good joke… The urge to utter his first apology…

But no, not only would that insult the man; to Light, it was akin to giving up his virginity. He was angry with the detective. He was angry with Misa. He was angry with himself…because for the first time in his life, he doubted one of his decisions. For the first time in his short, perfect, life, Light Yagami began to wonder if he'd done something wrong. No…He knew he'd done wrong before, though the exact acts were fuzzy…but, for the first time, he'd done something wrong for no reason at all. Because he was frustrated, and that was a sign of weakness. He'd done it because he was irritated, used to getting his way, and forced in a situation that compromised his control. The worst of it was the knowledge that he'd done it, and he could not _justify_ it.

Even now, though, he dared not say anything. Even now, he knew that any apology he would make would be hollow, because there was a voice in the back of his head telling him that he hadn't done anything wrong. It was there, and while the calm, logical side of Light knew that was ridiculous, he also knew that it wouldn't go away. And it's existence nullified any apology he would ever make. He was childish in that way, because he'd had perfection. He'd never felt shame for anything he'd done. Like L must eat his sweets, Light must be right. Like L played…_had_ played, his violin, so Light must make his decisions…precise, perfect, and beautiful.

Hours passed. Nothing was said.

Finally the detective turned around. Light found that after four hours of waiting, he didn't have the heart to meet the man's eyes, and he likely never had to begin with. L walked towards him and Light stared at his feet, unable to look at him. It was quiet possibly the most humiliating failure of his life, being unable to do that. L put the violin in Light's hands, and Light's mind equated it with the corpse of a child. It felt unclean, broken, damaged beyond repair, and when faced with the utter truth of that…Light almost couldn't bear to hold it. L's words were quiet…stronger than Light would have been( and Light knew this, he hated this, how how he hated knowing…), and so much calmer.

"You're a Child, Light Yagami. And you play a child's game." The sharp bite of the back-handed slap was almost ecstasy…something finally, something that assuaged the guilt, made it flicker, made it hesitate. Light waited for the second almost anxiously. He waited. He waited…

It never came. The pain of the first was already fading, any comfort it offered being borne away in the breeze, until it nothing but the warmth of blood, like a hot rag pressed to his cheek. He finally glanced up, met eyes with the detective.

L just turned and picked up the handcuffs.

"Let's go."

_NO! You have to hit me, you have to hurt me, you coward! What are you doing, how can just…just let go like that? What is wrong with you, you freak?! You'll hit me over toothpaste, but I destroy something you loved religiously and you're just WALKING AWAY?! _ _TURN AROUND! TURN AROUND FIGHT ME, SOMETHING, ANYTHING!_

The handcuff clicked into place on his uninjured wrist, and Light almost didn't register it. He was staring at the violin in his hands, this vile, pitiful thing that he'd broken…Blood was soaking up the sleeve of his shirt, ruining it…

L didn't pull him. He just stood by the door and waited. Finally, admitting a defeat in a battle that was, in reality, a slaughter…Light Yagami followed the man inside.

AN- O.O I shivered when I wrote this. Yikes.


	13. Internal

AN- A glimpse into L's head now...

L wanted to scream. He wanted to hurt something, he wanted to hurt Light. That's when he started walking, because he wasn't entirely sure he'd be able to control himself. Up, four more floors to the roof, up the stairs, and he was angry with himself for a moment. He had to unlock it before he could open it. In the face of his rage, the double locks seemed irrelevant, stupid. Finally the door swung open, and L was bathed in the night. It didn't do anything…the expected rush of relief didn't come. He still felt like he was suffocating. There was an unexpected pressure on his chest, and L thought that maybe, for the first time his life, he wanted to cry.

He'd known better, he'd known better than to show him, then to let the bastard know. He reached to unlock the cuff and hesitated at the blood on the younger boy's wrist. He'd done that. Normally, he'd be concerned, but instead his mind has decided that there's not quite enough of it. It scared him. He couldn't look at the boy, and his control fractured further as the chain became dead weight in his hands. It would be easy to swing it, to beat him within an inch of his life with the heavy metal links.

No.

He knew better. He took his own off and hung the potential weapon over the door-knob before searching for a sufficient distance to flee from it. The balcony beckoned to him and he went, resting his crossed arms on the edge. The city was not beautiful, not now when all he wanted were the open fields of Watari's English orphanage. There the grass extended like an ocean, the rolling moors open and inviting…and full of stars. A song from Les Miserables began to echo in his head. One in which a detective swears to the heavens that he shall capture his criminal, or he'll die honorably in the attempt. He felt more than heard Light begin to move towards him, and if the boy came any closer, L was sure physical harm would befall him.

"Don't move. Don't…move." _I think I might kill you right now._ Of course he wouldn't, and thinking about doing so didn't make him feel any better, quite ill in fact, but Light just didn't understand.

His violin was more than precious to him. It had been the first thing he'd ever owned in his life. Not even the clothes on his back had belonged to him when he'd bought it. It was the only thing he'd managed to keep, locked away from prying eyes, spiteful children, and vacant-eyed care-takers. He'd earned the money from Watari, working his first few cases, and was ecstatic to achieve something, to be acknowledged and accepted for the very thing that set him apart from others. L was a genius. He'd never known there was a word for his plague, but he'd always known that he functioned differently from the other children. He'd always known that he didn't fit, and it was a curse. Never underestimate the eyes of a child, for they see everything. And L saw more, he saw so much more. He saw when the owner of his first orphanage took money from charities to buy nice things for himself. He saw when the nurses and maids abused, or neglected the children in their care. He watched the owners of his second Orphanage auction off the few belongings that came in with the new children. He watched, he listened, he knew. They never kept him for long, because he had an intolerable sense of justice. He knew these things, and worse, he knew what they meant. He knew exactly how it would affect things, why it was wrong. He was threat, a hazard to have around. The crooked people of a crooked world…and he was the straightest of them all. The opposite of what they saw…

A nuisance.

Watari found him, tested him with a few cases, and finally adopted him into Wammy's house. That was when he'd bought the violin and begun his lessons. By the end of the year, he could play with best of them. L had a great creative talent, and split it between his work, the cases, and his love, the music.

And Light had just taken that from him…for no reason whatsoever. The spoiled son of a good man. L had the utmost respect for his father, Soichiro…but his son…

All of this, he wanted nothing more then to turn around and say it, make him listen, make the fool understand. Dangerous of course, foolhardy in face of Kira. L wasn't entirely sure he cared right now. He turned around, opened his mouth…and paused.

He didn't need to say anything. For all of his faults, Light Yagami was a genius. He'd followed L's rant closely, without him ever saying a word…it was written on his face. The once pristine, emotionless façade was gone, shattered, and in its place was a very confused, very sad teenager. L thought for a moment that he hadn't given him enough credit at first.

Then the violin creaked in his fist, and oh yes he had. He'd given him far too much credit…even mistaken the bastard for HUMAN once. No…no more.

He finally trusted himself to speak, and the irony of it was that Light already knew. He'd never apologize. Ever. The idea of an apology from Light Yagami's lips brought a smile to his face. The violin creaked again, and the smile disappeared anyway. Light was still staring at his feet, but L was steady in his anger now.

"You're a child, Light Yagami. And you play a child's game." He backhanded him, and oh god, very nearly lost his control again. Light relaxed briefly, and L fists clenched. He still wanted to paint the roof red with Little Light's face, but he refrained. Light looked up at him, surprised. And the urge was gone. The guilt was there, L could see there behind his eyes, and he knew that if gave in, if he fought with him now, then Light would get over it, move on. The guilt would vanish, and L didn't want to let him off that easily. So he turned around, and put the cuffs back on him. Let Light stew in his guilt a little longer. God knows it would do him some good.

Right now, L just wanted sugar. He'd eat it raw if he had to.


	14. Dismissal

AN- And here we have the beginning of the aftermath. I wanted to clarify a few things, as well. The "hidden messages" Light was referring to in chap10...it's the same method Misa used when she organized their meeting. Light also doesn't remember being Kira, but there are times when he feels he's forgotten something, that there are memories and emotions that he can't remember or explain...like the occasional wave of hatred for L.

Also, This is angry L. Angry L is scary. Ye be warned. There is a gun mentioned in this chapter, but I think I've managed to keep in character with L while using it. Thoughts are appreciated.

Light followed L through the door and waited silently as he locked it again. The detective took the violin from him as he continued down the stairs. Light was still upset, but he dared not say anything. He didn't know what L was thinking right now, and he didn't trust himself not to provoke him into the fist-fight that Light craved. They stopped by Misa's room for a moment. She and Watari were sitting on the bed, her arm numbed, and the elder hard at work painstakingly removing every tiny sliver of wood. She looked at the floor when they entered, but L was not here to see her. Luckily, Light seemed fine…She'd wondered if the detective would hurt him. The detective paused in the door way, idly scratching his leg with a foot.

"Watari. I'm going out. Stay here and see to Miss Amane."

"L…are you sure about…"

"Watari."

"…Yes, L."

Light stared after the detective for a moment, before an insistent tug at his wrist reminded him that they were attached. He followed him out and down, and the detective paused at their floor, keying in the code. Light had no idea what the man was doing, and knowing the mood he was in…he wasn't sure he wanted to know. L tossed the violin on the bed (Neatly made by Watari), and forcibly hauled Light into the room after him. The door slid shut, and L returned to the key pad, as though to lock them in for the night.

Light was amazed when he typed in a different code, and the keypad and small screen flipped up, revealing a small compartment built into the wall. He felt his knees weaken when L reached in and pulled out a small pistol and belt. For a moment, just a moment, he considered the possibility L was about to kill him…

"L…that's a gun…"

"How observant, Yagami."

"Do you know how to use a gun, L?"

"I have practiced, if that what you're inquiring about. I'm a fair shot."

"Have you ever shot anyone?"

"Not yet."

"Why then?"

"Kira is not my only enemy." Light nodded dumbly. This man was an international mastermind; of course there were people after him.

"Um…are you sure you know how to…"

"Yagami." The detective met his eyes again and the words died on Light's lips. He understood Watari's compliance now…one did not question that look.

"Why?" L rolled his eyes and finished strapping the belt on, adjusting the holster to the middle of his back and pulling his shirt over it, making sure it didn't show. He spoke as thought Light were five years old.

"Who is normally with me everyday?"

"…Watari…"

"And where is Watari right now?"

"…Tending to Misa's arm."

"Meaning…"

"He won't be coming." Light finished lamely.

"Oh, aren't you clever?" L put the gun in the holster, but left the ammunition in the compartment. Only 22 percent of the general population would challenge an armed man, whether he was loaded or not. Safe enough, considering it was nearing two in the morning. He also wasn't willing to test his self-control just yet, with Light this close and him being unable to put more that five feet of distance between them. Without another word, he shut the panel, keyed in the door code and was off, tailing a still stunned and considerably more uncomfortable Light. After all…no need to let his suspect know that it wasn't loaded…let him think on that for a while, selfish prig.

L made only one more stop, at the investigation room. They hadn't been dismissed, and all of them had stayed, considerably curious after L's sudden exit and prolonged absence. He banged in the code for the door and didn't step inside.

"Go home. Now. All of you Get out…We'll continue this in two day's time."

And he was gone, dragging a slightly panicked Light after him. Two days? L was postponing the investigation for _two days_ because of Light? The elevator ride was hell. Light was slowly convincing himself that L just wanted to take him to an empty parking lot and blow his brains out. Or maybe he wouldn't wait that long, just drag him behind the building, and throw him in a dumpster afterwards. L was watching him from the other side of the tiny room, and thinking.

Light Yagami had to be the most conceited person L had ever met. Even now, he was convinced that L's actions revolved around him, that he was doing this just because of Light. L wanted to slap him again. It took awhile for the elevator to hit bottom, and Light burst from it gasping, the tension of the tiny box having tensed him until L could play his nerves like a bloody violin if he wanted to. L crossed the lobby to the small key pad by the door. He pressed the intercom and spoke quietly, the same biting edge to his voice that had been present since he'd first spoke to Light on the roof.

"Officers, You have five minutes to vacate the building. Anyone remaining after that will be locked in for the night, and I'm not feeling charitable enough to give you a guest room right now. Go home, or sleep at your desk. Good night."

L was taking no prisoners tonight.

He set the timer and pushed out into Tokyo night traffic. He slowed up a bit, walking normally, and Light fell in beside him. The chain rattled as Light reached up and unbuttoned his bloody sleeve. It was stiff, rust red on the blue, and dried blood-dust flaked away as he began to roll it up. L shook his head. Even now, he was concerned with his appearance. Arrogance. L didn't understand the boy's problem. Then again, he supposed he wasn't graced with the fluid beauty of the youth next to him, and had enough trouble dealing with his own appearance. Perhaps the arrogance was part of Light coping with the difficulties that came with beauty. L was smart enough to know that it often presented more problems than being ugly did.

Light, felt, disgusting. In more ways than one. He wanted nothing more than to go back to their room and shower until the hot water ran out. This guilt thing...it was like his heart was trapped in oil, and he couldn't wait to try and scrub it off. He didn't dare inquire as to where they were headed at two in the morning, but a nagging feeling in his stomach told him it was probably food. He also didn't want to be subjected to anymore biting remarks by the detective.

Light had long wondered how they were friends. L was anything but affectionate, and he couldn't give a rat's ass if the man cared about him…but he saw it now. It was in the line of the detective's shoulders, it was in the way he moved, the way he talked…it was in the way he _was_. There was nothing familiar about the man, and even his indifferent expression was lacking something it'd had before. As though the warmth in his person had been taken away, and Light marveled at the how the subtle changes presented him with an entirely new person. Much like when he was…wait.

Much like when he was who?

He hadn't intended to finish the thought with 'who'… It'd just come out that way. That was impossible though…he was just Light Yagami. There was no 'who'.

Not that he knew of.

He picked up the slack in the chain and looped it over his arm out of habit. He used to joke with himself that he felt he was walking the detective around. Tonight, he did not question who was walking who.


	15. Cake

AN- Okay, time to start moving away from the angst...just a bit. O.o I don't know when I started taking this story seriously, really I don't. It was just gonna be a fun little drabble, and I was supposed to end with Chapter 12. I can't seem to quit writing though...I hope you guys don't mind. It just won't stop. So yeah...just...lemme know when you get tired of reading...

More snippy L and mentally whining Light here.

Disclaimer- I do not own The Cake Lady, nor have I used it in it's proper context. It's just a tiny bakery around the corner from me...not a franchise or 24 hour. Just...there...with a cute name...that I borrowed...

Cake

L led him a long way downtown, but thankfully, not into any alleys or parking lots. They walked for almost another hour, and any hope Light had of eating slowly began to deteriorate. They'd worked through lunch, and spent what would have been dinner locked in silent company on the roof.

Light shivered involuntarily. Leave it to L to teach him guilt then leave him to drown in it. It was like teaching someone the principle of swimming and why it works, and then shoving them off the boat. What made it worse was the fact that Light still wanted to apologize. A part of him wanted nothing more than walk out into the center of the intersection they were crossing and make some long eloquent speech of remorse, then refuse to budge until it was accepted.

His stomach rolled at the idea. He couldn't, would never… and he had the feeling that L didn't really expect one. Still, the longing was there, and he was determined to beat it into submission.

Finally, they approached a small building, and L didn't turn off to one side or other. This, apparently was their destination. Well…his destination. Light had no say in the matter.

"Cake?"

"Yes."

"You strapped on a gun and went out alone at two in the morning because you wanted _CAKE?"_

"Yes."

The simple truth of that robbed Light of words. Yes, this man here, wanted around the world for all the right reasons and a few wrong ones, this multi-millionaire that had the world's politicians lined up like so many birds in cages, eating out of his palm…he'd done this for cake. Light had stopped in his shock. L glanced up at "The Cake Lady" fondly, the 24 hour sweet store that Watari frequented on behalf of the detective. He knew their menu by heart, but he had never set foot in the store himself.

"L…Ryuuzaki…" Light corrected himself instantly. "I think you're insane."

"Yes, well, I think you're Kira. I believe I'm lesser of our two crimes. Now, Cake. Walk."

He pointed, and Light shuffled past him still trying to wrap his mind around the fact that he was in public with L. Hell, the idea of L in public. He was so shocked that he even held the door open for the detective, thought the irony of the gesture was lost on the man.

A moment later they stood before the counter, and were breathing deeply of the sugar-infested air. Light would usually be running by now, but he was so hungry that he too was scanning the menu for something appetizing. However, considering that he usually avoided sweets in general, he had no idea what qualified as appetizing here. He leaned toward L, whispering conspiratorially,

"Ryuuzaki?" L ignored him. He tried again.

"Ryuuzaki?" L sighed, closing his eyes like a patient baby-sitter before whispering back.

"_Yes_, Yagami?" Light scanned the menu.

"What's good here?" It was L's turn to stare in shock. Light? Eating Sweets?

"Are you ill?"

"No, but if I inhale much more of this sugar, I might be." Light glanced between the man and the menu again.

"Look, I'm hungry. I don't eat sweets, I don't know what's good…just…go easy on me. I'm a lightweight at this."

"You shouldn't use alcoholic references if you are not an alcoholic, Yagami." L brought a thumb to his teeth and nibbled slightly as he surveyed their options. Finally he pointed at two items, pulling out his wallet and counting out the money. The smallest bill he had was ten times the price of what he wanted. Annoying, but L wanted his sweets. He turned to the counter and the girl working it and paused. He hated talking to people…he hated it. Especially in person, because they could see him. People that saw him didn't respect him, didn't take him seriously.

Light saw the hesitation and slipped the money out of L's fingers, walking forward before he could protest. Light could talk to people. He had a gift for it. The girl glanced up and grinned, but it faltered a little when she noticed the blood on his shirt.

"Are you hurt sir? Should I call the hospital?" Light glanced down, noticing the blood on his front for the first time…it must have transferred from Misa when he carried her to the bed. He covered quickly.

"Ah, no…My…Our sister hurt herself. Thus the cakes so late…trying to make her feel better. She'll be okay though, it's just a nosebleed. She's young, and the blood scared her…We're hoping this will take her mind off of it." Light flashed her a smile, and all her apprehension visibly melted.

"Aw that's so sweet of you two. What can I get you today?" Light glanced at the bill in his hand and froze. Of course…multi-millionaire…of course. Damn. He looked back at he menu, thinking quickly.

"Um..Numbers Two and Five…" He leaned in and whispered to her. "And could I trouble you for a fresh batch of brownies? The whole thing. It's my brother's favorite, and he's worrying himself sick. Rather Fond of Misa-chan, you see."

She smiled back at him, "Not a problem at all, sir. Let me get the first two out and I'll be right back. I just took some out of the oven about twenty minutes ago. Is that fresh enough?" Light nodded and she rang it up. The brownies were costly, but Light was sure he could cover the extra. Besides, it made breaking that huge bill seem more sensible.

"Our sister, Yagami?"

"Would you rather I said your girlfriend?"

" I find it interesting that you automatically try to lie. She's your girlfriend."

"I…I just couldn't think of another way to explain the handcuffs, so deal with it. It's not like I could really tell her. " Why did he try to lie at every turn? Light supposed he was just doing it to get back at the detective.

He seemed to be doing that a lot lately.

When the order came the brownie box was huge. L immediately noticed the change in his hand, and calculated what would cost the extra money. That box was either two dozen cookies, or an entire batch of brownies. He caught Light's eye, irritated.

"I'll pay you back, I promise. It's in my wallet back at Head…er, Home."

The thing in chocolate. That's what L had ordered, and in Light's famished state, the warm cocoa-scent was about to drive him mad.

" I think I got a sugar-high just standing in that place."

"Yagami, for some reason you seem to think we're on speaking terms again."

That hurt. Light almost stopped again, the pain in his chest was so surprising. That…that actually hurt. That _mattered._ Light had never let another person's words get to him…ever. But L…L had just done it with a single statement. The oil-slick grip Guilt had on his heart tightened unmercifully with just a few words. Oh, Light did not like this at all. This guilt thing…it was terrible. It made him angry. But he bit back on the harsh words leaving his mouth, because really…what right did he have to say anything? None. None whatsoever, and it was torture.

So he shut up, and kept walking, carrying the heavy bag. A wordless Light Yagami was an angry Light indeed.


	16. Peace?

AN- Okay, Really trying to put some humor back into this now. Moving out the slump, because I believe L has taught Light a valuable lesson. Guilt sucks...royally effin sucks. Don't worry, he hasn't forgiven him yet, but at least he's stopped being scary now. Scary L was scary!

Also, I was surprised at the response I got to my last note...I hadn't intended to stop writing, but I didn't realize this story was quite that popular. I checked my stats and just about fainted. Wow. Thank you. So much...I've had people that have never reveiwed before sign in to ask me to keep writing. I'm amazed and touched. That being said, time to move on, and away from depression. This one is the for the girls, have fun with the imagery. The song is "Stars" from Les Miz. I don't own it, so don't kill me. It just...got stuck in my head as L's song. Sorry.

**New note- While I realize that Light is more intimate than Light-kun in Japan, L is not Japanese. He is British, at least in my story, and I'm trying to bring that into play a bit. So when addresses him as Light, not Light-kun, he's not trying to be cuddly about it. It's more like your best going from calling you by a pet name (ie. Meg) to your last name (Johnson). I figured if he's angry enough to curse and lose his appetite for sweets, he's gonna slip back into some English. That's all.**

Step Lightly- Mikanis.

Peace?

Light had never seen L take a bath before. The tub was so rarely used that there was a fine layer of dust on it. As Light was brushing his teeth, the sudden roar of water made him jump. He'd eaten whatever that…thing…L had chosen for him was. L had called it a cheesecake, and it'd been nice for the first three bites. His body just wasn't used to dealing with that much sugar though, and it was soon making him ill. He'd eaten it all though, damn it, every bite, and in some part of his mind he recognized this as a form of self-punishment.

In the corner of his vision, he saw L begin to strip and began studying the faucet with a fierce interest.

L had yet to touch his cake. It was as though he'd bought it and lost his craving over the course of an hour. Even watching Light tuck away his cheesecake with less than enthusiastic speed hadn't rekindled his appetite. So far, he'd only run his bath, and there he sat, wrapped in a towel and hot water, with no cake for the past seven hours. That, more than anything else, more than the damn gun, worried Light.

Light wondered when he started caring. He blamed the guilt. He rinsed his brush and toweled his own wet hair. The brownies and L's cake sat next to the tub, but L was staring at the wall, to all appearances having forgotten the rest of the world. Light suddenly realized that the chain didn't run to the detective's wrist, but to the towel bar on the wall next to the shower. Son of a bitch…he was stuck here. He glanced at L and felt the guilt grip him again. It was as though L had taken his heart and shoved it into an oil lamp and lit it, the way he barbed his every word now. Really, it was starting to get old.

Time to don his thick skin.

He sat on the toilet for close to two hours before deciding he'd had enough. L was curled in the bath, and this was the first and final mourning he'd do for his violin. After this, it was back to the case. He'd buy himself another violin, and things would go back to normal. He just needed to become objective about his last one, but that was proving more difficult than he'd expected…still, it was manageable, and he'd be damned before one Light Yagami got the best of him.

The song that had come to him earlier began playing in his head, and he let it, using it as a brief escape…

There, out in the darkness  
A fugitive running  
Fallen from grace  
Fallen from grace  
God be my witness  
I never shall yield  
Till we come face to face  
Till we come face to face

He knows his way in the dark  
Mine is the way of the Lord  
And those who follow the path of the righteous  
Shall have their reward  
And if they fall  
As Lucifer fell  
The flame  
The sword!

Stars  
In your multitudes  
Scarce to be counted  
Filling the darkness  
With order and light  
You are the sentinels  
Silent and sure  
Keeping watch in the night  
Keeping watch in the night

You know your place in the sky  
You hold your course and your aim  
And each in your season  
Returns and returns  
And is always the same  
And if you fall as Lucifer fell  
You fall in flame!

And so it has been and so it is written  
On the doorway to paradise  
That those who falter and those who fall  
Must pay the price!

Lord let me find him  
That I may see him  
Safe behind bars  
I will never rest  
Till then  
This I swear  
This I swear by the stars!

He was so lost in his quiet meditation that he didn't notice Light climbing into the tub with him. The smell of chocolate invaded his senses, cutting through his thoughts like a knife, and he opened his eyes.

"SHIT!"

Light just barely caught the kick. Barely…so close was it, that his own knuckles clicked his teeth together. He'd managed to save the cake though.

"Yagami, what the _hell_ are you doing?"

"Um…getting flashed apparently."

"Once is Once, Yagami." L snatched his leg back, and oh, if looks could kill. Light was sitting on the edge of the tub, his feet in the water and a saucer with the Chocolate Fudge-and-Custard Devil's Cake on it in one hand. L supposed if he were gay that this wouldn't be an unwelcome sight…a beautiful, shirtless, and shower-fresh man holding your favorite food, chained to your wall and sitting on the edge of your bathtub. However, L was not gay, and so the glory of the sight was lost on him. Pity.

Light flushed, remembering that the detective had owed him one. He held the cake out, and the cynical, dark side of his mind told him that peace-offerings were for weaker people. He didn't care. He really didn't…he was damn tired, and steadily losing patience with the man, never mind the amount of pain he'd just caused him.

"I know you're upset, but you are really starting to get on my nerves, L. I didn't think the Greatest Detective in the World would sit here and sulk like child. I'll buy you another violin, I promise, but only if you eat your cake and let me go to bed."

L just stared at the idiot in front of him. Light was going to pay for the violin? That…was almost an apology. And this…this was almost a peace-offering. It was also, however, Light Yagami, and Light Yagami never gave anything. This was a request, shielded behind a heavy layer of contempt and disrespect.

Typical Light.

"I believe I've said all I need to on the matter, Light."

Light sighed…still no honorifics, but he was using his first name now, and that was something. And yes…L had said everything he needed to. It was what he hadn't said that was driving Light insane.

"Good. Now please, let me go to sleep. It's almost six in the morning."

AN- That cake equals Diabetus on a plate O.o


	17. The Best Part of Waking Up

Is beating the hell out of your sleeping buddy.

AN- You'll love this. Love it. Muahahahah...

L was still angry when he woke up. The box of brownies, half demolished, lay beside his bed. Light still hadn't paid him back…gifts bought with one's own money are hardly gifts, know? It was two in the afternoon…L hadn't fallen asleep until close to nine, but his mind was screaming that he should be awake.

He glanced over at Light. His usually perfect hair was sticking up almost as badly as L's did. His injured wrist lay on the pillow next to his head, and in his sleep, it looked as though nothing in the world could touch him. L liked a sleeping Light better than an awake-and-thinking Light. The second version was infuriating.

L had the urge to reach for his violin and had actually picked up his hand before he remembered. The irritation he felt doubled when he remembered the reason. He drew his knees up to his chin and sulked some more. So what if it was childish? Light deserved to suffer through his tantrum, the spoiled git. The smell of chocolate hung heavy in the air, and L glanced at the sleeping Light again.

Childish indeed.

…

Light felt a light pressure on his hips but it wasn't enough wake him. He pressed deeper into the pillow beneath his cheek.

Then something poked his temple. He frowned, and it happened again. His eyes fluttered open, and he realized two things very quickly…

L was poking him.

L was sitting on him.

Light was suddenly very much awake. He opened his mouth, a thousand witty, irritated remarks flying to his lips…

And nearly choked as L shoved a fistful of brownie into his mouth. He nearly gagged, eyes huge as L leaned in, almost nose to nose, and remarked very quietly.

" I really, _Really_, don't like you Yagami-san." Before Light could blink, L rolled off, drew his legs up, and kicked him off the bed. Somewhere in the air between the bed and the desk, he managed to swallow the thick, revolting cake in his mouth. He hit the desk with a resounding crash, and picked himself up, livid.

"What the FUCK, L?!"

L was already up, using the bed as pivot as he sent his foot crashing into the teen's face.

Light was beyond furious. With a yell, he grabbed the chain and hauled L off the bed with him.

…

L sat back, finally, and surveyed the damage done to his bedroom. Trashed…completely trashed. The front of his shirt was ripped, hanging about his belt and spattered with blood, and he was dimly aware of a trail running from his brow to drip down his throat. Light fared no better. There was a large scratch across the back of his shoulders( L had pinned him to the desk at one point and beaten the hell out of his chest and stomach), and his tongue, lips, and various other cuts and scratches bled. Both were covered in darkening bruises, and lay gasping for breath, sated. L glanced at the clock. One hour, and they'd annihilated the place and each other.

"Thank you, Light-kun, I think I can sleep now."

Light watched in shock as the detective curled up on the bed and promptly passed out.

_He woke me up and beat the hell out of me, just so HE could get some sleep?_

"You're insane. Completely insane."

"(mumur) Think…Kira."

"I mean…you are really something, you know that?"

"Shut up…sleepy…" And L was gone. Light had little else to do but gingerly lie next to him and try to go back to sleep himself. He owed the detective.

_Once is Once…_

AN- Sorry it's so short, but I didn't want to write the entire fight scene, because I tend to go all "Intense Kani" when I do...it wouldn't be fun anymore. Just wait until the see the next bit...muahaha.


	18. Damages

AN- Sorry, somber mood tonight. The promised prank is begun here, and will be continued when I'm in a better mood. For those interested, I've written another story, Called "Truth in the End", a T rated Light POV. I'd love some feedback if you're willing to read more of my stuff. This is just a step back, and I hope you realize that the entire story had taken on a slightly more serious tone since the incident. Also, L has returned to calling Light "Light-kun". This does not imply forgiveness, or at least it's not meant to. It's more to show that L is beginning to consider him as a person again, but that's about it. I hope you enjoy my other story, and I do apologize for this short chapter. Humor is not in me tonight.

Step Lightly,

Mikanis

Damages

Light turned the main computer on, glancing over his shoulder at the sleeping detective. His cell phone was easy to program and after a few minutes, Light had what he wanted and shut the machine down again.

Hiding the phone, he then slipped back into bed.

…

L woke and stretched. Light was already awake and reading, and L glared at him. Fingering the bloody tatters of his shirt, he frowned that the blanket, which sported new red-brown stripes of dried blood.

"I believe a shower is in order."

"Fine. Go take one." Light marked his page with a finger and watched as L dug some fresh clothes from the drawer.

"Then, you're going to help me straighten up. We've ruined the place…"

"You honestly think we're not going to fight again? We still have another day."

"Well…we were unnaturally violent, that's all. It needs to be done."

"I was unnaturally inspired, Light-kun. It's pointless."

"Well in that case, there's really no point in you showering or changing, either." The remark was out before Light had fully realized what he'd said. L raised an eyebrow at him and shrugged out of the remnants of his shirt. His pale skin was covered in hideous bruises, claw and bite marks, assorted scratches, dried blood, and even, on his shoulder, the faint outline of a keyboard from where Light had swung it at him.

"Kira must like the sight of blood on my skin." That bit deep, Light still shocked at the amount of damage he'd done, but he felt it. The idea that he'd done this to that…little man…made him feel a little ill. Even though he knew L was an even match physically, possibly more than even…he still looked frail and very…breakable. L even gave turn or two, sarcastically modeling his battered physique.

Guilt.

It was fast becoming the bane of Light's existence.

"Just…Go take your shower."

"Many Thanks, Light-kun….I'm_ so_ obliged. Shall I kiss your feet now?"

"If you don't leave soon, you may whether you want to or not." Light glared him as his legs tensed, ready to kick if the detective jumped him. L eyes picked up the tiny movement, and seemed for the first time to _see_ Light. His face betrayed nothing as he took in the damage he'd done.

"I don't know how many more of these fights we'll be able to have. One of us will fall apart."

"I'm willing to place bets."

L gave a humorless chuckle and pulled him into the bathroom. Light took up his perch on the toilet and continued to read.


	19. Cake for Mozart Part 1

AN- Wow...I think that's the longest I've gone without updating! Many many sorrows and apologies to my readers. I hope I haven't broken your violin! I've been quite busy, and I make this update from a hotel in DALLAS, baby! Woot vacations! I got to tag along on a business trip, and this place is soooo much bigger than Memphis. I feels tiny.

Anyway...More Hilarity in this chapter. Again, have fun with the imagery girls, and this one is for LetThereBeRaito (I love that! Ain't it great...let there be Raito...ha.) , Oztan, and Lyra-November.

Step Lightly from TEXAS,

Kani

Cake for Mozart

Misa stepped into the room and almost dropped her cake. It was a complete mess…the men lay asleep on the bed, and they looked like they'd lost a fight with almost every inanimate object in the room. Even the alarm clock, its broken screen blinking pitifully, hung off the edge of the nightstand.

She didn't even notice.

What shocked her were the men. Again, cuts and bruises aside, they slept heavily. She set the cake down and sat at the foot of the bed staring. L was curled in his usual sleep-ball on top of the blanket, one hand tucked beneath his cheek, the other fisted a few inches from his face. However, with knuckles just brushing the detective's…so was Light. In exactly the same posture, Light was wrapped tightly into himself, an almost mirror image of the man next to him.

_Yin and Yang…_Cliché, yes, but the thought crossed her mind anyway. They say clichés are only cliché because they are so often true.

She fingered the bandage on her arm, thinking. Light and L really weren't all that different. In fact, the only difference she could see were a few years of experience, and some serious lack in socialization on the part of the detective. Not that different at all.

Suddenly, she realized that they'd been fighting, and resisted the urge to wake them up. It angered her, but…she didn't. Some part of her realized that they both needed to fight…in truth, they almost never fought without reason. If Light saw the need to throw a punch…Misa guessed his logic was sound enough. He was a genius after all.

She gently reached out and touched a foot on each boy, ready to move if one of them decided to kick. She'd seen them both go at it in her suite before, and she had absolutely no interest in being on the receiving end of either one.

Light woke first, and it was sad to watch his eyes flutter open, and instantly harden at the sight of the man across from them. He suddenly realized how he was lying and snapped completely awake, sitting up quickly. L never did open his eyes, only intoned from his pillow.

"Good Morning Misa-san." Misa looked at the ground, a hand plucking idly at the bandage. Light winced as he stretched, glancing at the girl at the foot of the bed. The bandage covered her arm from mid-forearm to shoulder, and the weight settled over his heart again. It was like donning a lead lined cloak when he woke up. Guilt was a bitch.

"Ryuuzaki-san…I've…come to apologize. I made you something." L sighed and cracked an eye at her. She looked like an abused kitten, sitting there like that. He sat up and stretched too, before realizing that he didn't have a shirt on. Embarassed, he began rummaging through the drawer.

"That was unnecessary, Misa-san, I assure you."

"No, I needed to do it. Watari-san showed me to the kitchen, and helped me with it."

Watari? Kitchen? Meaning Food? L paused in his search, his interest very suddenly piqued. Light, seemingly unconcerned without his shirt, crawled to the end of the bed and glanced over the edge.

"Wow. That looks…amazing, Misa…" She blushed with pride, and leaned down to pick up her 'gift'.

It was hideous. Absolutely hideous. It was…a cake, L supposed, and if Watari had helped, he knew it wasn't poisoned, and promised to be at least tasty…but, really. Misa must have decorated it. There were two kinds of frosting on it, lemon and chocolate, his favorites, and it was a chocolate cake. It looked like she'd tried to layer frostings and instead of melting them down and pouring them over the cake, she'd tried to manually spread them. Noble attempt, disastrous results. It looked…well…unpleasant.

"It looks wonderful." L leaned forward and sniffed the mass in front of him. He dipped a finger in the icing and tasted it, and all apprehension faded away. Yes, it looked awful, but it was indeed tasty. He felt Light suddenly tense next to him.

"Misa…I think you should go."

She gave Light the most evil glare…the apologetic overtones didn't even dull it. She was obviously upset with him.

"Light-kun, that is very rude of you."

"You don't understand, it's just the time and…"

"I just wanted to do something nice for the man, Light!"

"I know Misa, but really, you should…"

"Light-kun, she can stay…"

"But, it's just…"

From somewhere in the room, a tiny song was heard. It grew louder every second. L froze, looked at Light, looked at Misa, and understood.

Sometimes, he really didn't like Light. Not at all.

"Ah…um...Here Misa." L reached for the saucer with his morning cake on it, and cut of an immense portion of the cake, lying it alongside the other piece. It was so large it hung off the edge and left icing on his fingers.

"I promise you that I will eat this part of the cake. And this…This is for both of us, okay?"

With that, he flipped the cake into Light's face. It was heavier than he expected, so really…it was more the chin and throat, but his expression was the same. Misa gasped and clapped a hand over her mouth, a shocked giggle escaping. No time, however, he must find that song.

"Now, please return to your room…we'll join you there shortly for dinner." He fought Light for the platter, and managed to angle it down, smearing the cake down Light's chest.

"Um…just…wear something cute. We'll see you then." She nodded, and hopped up. L waited until he could hear her laughing in the hallway and immediately threw the cake aside.

"Light Yagami, you're insufferable! Where is it coming from?!"

"Like I'm gonna tell you now you sugar freak." Light _hated_ being messy. He hated it. With an absolute passion did he hate it, and now he was covered in sticky icing.

"Light, You still do not understand what this song-"

"Yes, I do."

"Does to my thinking, and really-"

"I get it."

"It's even worse because I've been stressed and-"

"L, look, it's not that big a deal…"

"And FRANKLY, Light-kun, You look edible!"

Shocked silence.

"Now TURN IT OFF!!"


	20. Cake for Mozart Part 2

For a brief, terrifying second, Light forgot where he'd hidden the cell phone. Then Confutatis started, and a warning glace from L sent his frozen mind into gear. He'd hidden it in the bowl of the lamp next to the bed after he set the alarm.

"Light-kun, I wish you would _hurry_." Light knocked the lamp over trying to get to the damnable chirping object. Finally it was in his grasp, and he hit the power button, turning it off completely. He supposed it would have been funnier if Misa hadn't been in the room, or before the…the cake remark. Light cast a glance at the detective.

"L, I…"

"-Mumble-"

"What…"

"Shower, now."

"I just…"

"SHOWER, LIGHT-KUN!" The chain went tight as the detective drug him into the bathroom, fumbling in his pocket for the key. The cuff clattered to the floor, and Light was forcibly spun and shoved into the stall. A thin, pale arm wound around his hips an pulled the tap. The water was freezing, and he still had his pants on…he opened his mouth to protest but the stall door shut in his face.

"I…That's Cold!" He turned the tap to hot and began scrubbing the chocolate off of his chest.

"Light-kun, are you gay?"

"What?"

"Are, you, gay?"

"Not to my knowledge."

"So you confess you do not know?"

"I confess that I've never had a sexual attraction before."

"Your actions lead me to believe that when you do, there is a 67 percent chance it will be to a man."

"What?!" Light froze, staring hard at the outline of the detective through the frosted glass.

"I did not Stutter, Light-kun."

"I think you're wrong. I also think that this is the singular most awkward conversation of my life."

"Agreed. Why do you think I am wrong?"

"Because I just…I do. And Misa-"

"You have already indicated that you care nothing for Miss Amane, or that the relationship is not based on sexual attraction at least."

"And I guess because I'm not attracted to a supermodel, I'm automatically gay. Is that your theory?"

"Don't insult my reasoning, Light-kun. I'm merely curious as to why you keep playing with my head. Are you trying to garner some type of information?"

"I'm not playing with your head, L; I just can't consider you a friend when I know nothing about you."

"Flirting with me will not get you any closer."

"I have not been FLIRTING with you." Light rinsed the last of the frosting off and flung the door open. L was standing there, smirking. The expression suited him better than it should.

"I know that Light-kun, I just like making you angry." L leaned in and sniffed the boy's chest before Light could hit him.

"Ah, good. Much better. Now, we need to dress for-", An insistent beeping from the computer desk cut him off. He slid the cuff back on and tugged him out. Watari's voice came over the speakers when L accepted the call.

"I'm afraid that Miss Amane is feeling rather ill. Side effect of the antibiotics I gave her, I'm afraid. She apologizes and hopes to do breakfast or lunch instead."

"That's fine, Watari." L eyed the uneaten cake on his plate. "Tell her the cake was wonderful."

"Yes, L."

Light stared at the microphone with unmasked frustration. L turned to address him coolly.

"You seem disappointed."

"Yes, actually. Now I have to spend more time with you, which has just become distinctly awkward."

"Light-kun looks nice, but he shouldn't be so arrogant. I too have no sexual preference."

"I'm not bisexual, L. I've never been attracted to _anyone_…period." Light glanced at him, and the smirk was back. L enjoyed screwing with his head apparently.

"Yes, I know, Light-kun. I just like-"

"Making me angry."

" I really wish you wouldn't assume you know my thoughts and cut me off. After all, I caught you completely off-guard last time."

"Fine. What were you about to say?"

" I just like making you angry."

"That's what I said."

"I only implied that what I was going to say was different. I never said it was."

Light stared at him.

"You're crazy."

"And You're Kira."

"That's absurd."

"Then I must be sane. But, back to our topic, no, I've never had an attraction either."

"Except to a dead Romantic-era composer."

"That's not an attraction, it's an addiction, and yes, apparently it blurs genders."

"Excuse me?"

"What? Did Light-kun think that I was not surprised myself? I am many things, Light-kun, but Gay is not one of them."

"L…"

"Yes, Light-kun?"

"Can we _please_ change subjects now? And never talk about your sexuality again?"

"Of course, Light-kun. I just like-"

"Making me angry?"

"Making you feel foolish."

"Likewise, L."

"Light-kun?"

"Yes?"

"Thinking on this conversation, how can you possibly say that we are not friends? We argue like we're married."

"L…"

"Yes, Light-kun?"

"Enough with the gay jokes."

"If you insist, Light-kun…"

AN- I hope that wasn't too hard to follow. If so, Someone tell me and I can revise it and send a better copy to you.

Oh...by the way.

I wrote twenty chapters, I wrote Twenty Chapters...(Dances) -Kani


	21. Daddy

AN- Kay, I'm back at home now. I feel much more at ease. Here we have a bit of Soichiro, Light's father. Why? Because that man was amazing. Absolutely amazing. People say father, I think Soichiro. I only hope that I live up to that definition of parenthood. Here, we have an angry Soichiro...muahahaha. The boys are in trouble. Reviews make me happy...I've been hearing from people who never reveiwed before, and I'm on Cloud 9 about that. For those just joining, Welcome, I hope you like it. Now, Onward to scolding!

Warning, Mild Light bashing ahead.

Daddy.

The door slid open the next morning, and the team stood in shock. They'd fought before, they kicked, punched, scratched and bitten…but this was something else entirely. Whatever had driven L from the investigation room two days ago had triggered a new level of brutality between the two. They entered limping, the both of them, L's body angled into a variation of his usual slump. Badly bruised about his chest and stomach, if nearly thirty years on the Police Force served Soichiro right. Light wasn't much better, leaning forward slightly, his mouth in a grim line as he forced himself to keep from wincing.

It hurt to see his son like this. The pair hobbled into the room, greeted only by silence. Even Matsuda's infectious cheer dimmed somewhat at the sight of them. Whatever happened had to have been terrible. Soichiro moved forward and put a fatherly arm around Light's shoulders. The immediate tensing told him he'd hit something sore. He pulled back and put a hand at his elbow. The boy flinched and his father gave up…Light was so badly hurt that Soichiro couldn't even touch him. The elder man felt an anger rising into his chest. The same tired anger that he'd felt while sitting in a cell next to his son. He'd known the extent of his confinement, and didn't trust himself to stay sane if he had to watch it.

This was something else entirely.

L stepped up onto his chair and crouched, the movement as slow as an old woman's. He turned to find Light's father scowling at him. He merely quirked an eyebrow in response. Light settled into his chair and breathed a sigh of relief. For once, he wouldn't mind being in one place for eight hours. He tensed immediately at the sound of his father's voice. He'd never heard his father angry…ever. Again, perfection taking its toll.

"Ryuuzaki…"

"Yes, Yagami-san?", L began dropping sugar cubes into his second morning tea, stirring them gently.

"What happened?" L cast a glance at Light, who was watching his father now. He pressed the hot cup to his battered lips for a moment before replying.

"One of our usual arguments."

"Don't insult me, Ryuuzaki. I know the difference between a stress-relief session and a beating. What happened?"

"It was a minor altercation, a direct result of our confinement, and I assure you, it was nothing more."

"It was important enough to shut the investigation down for two days?"

"Yagami-san…"

"Ryuuzaki, do not interrupt me." L stared at him. Light's mouth dropped open. This was…Soichiro in father mode. It was surprising, and though Light was far old enough to take care of his own fights, it was so different from his father's usual attitude that Light didn't say anything. He was content to watch.

"I've bent over backwards for you since you joined the investigation, Ryuuzaki. I've sacrificed time with my family, and even part of it, to accommodate your efforts." L nodded quietly.

"However, I cannot sit aside and watch as you two tear each other apart. To be frank about it, I'd rather you put Light back in his cell than watch you beat him within an inch of his life every few days. I raised the boy, and I never had to ground him, much less take a belt to him. I find it hard to understand you having so much trouble with him now, especially since he's grown."

"Yagami-san this was hardly…"

"Ryuuzaki, I am not finished." L sipped his tea in annoyance, but motioned for him to continue.

"If you cannot refrain from hurting my son while he is in your care, then I will remove us both from the investigation. I did not entrust him to you so that you could exact your own form of a death sentence."

"Dad, it's not that…"

"Light, stay out of this."

Silence fell over the investigation room. L sipped his tea, and Soichiro stared hard at the smaller man. L seemed to be seriously considering the offer. Light was sure that three days ago, he'd never have blinked at it before turning it down. Once again, it drove home the extent of the damage to their pitiful connection. Light couldn't bring himself to call it a relationship.

"Yagami-san, You have been of utmost importance to me since you joined the case. Not only have you given me the compliance that almost every other organized government in the world has denied me…you have also gifted me with the use of your son. His intelligence staggers me on occasion." Light reeled at the compliment. Where had that come from?

"However…" L, put more sugar into his tea, stirring gently.

"It is hardly my fault that he has reached the emotional maturity of an eight-year old."

Ouch.

"When he thinks…when he reasons, and keeps his feelings out of the matter, he is a profound intellect, an insightful detective that any father should be proud of. Thankfully, he is in the habit of detaching himself from his surroundings. When he doesn't, when he becomes frustrated, angry, or upset…He's worse than Miss Amane."

Light was staring at L now, his face turning various shades of red.

"In fact, I've never worked with anyone more petulant than myself," L held up his tea and sugar. "And I consider myself very child-like in many ways."

"On that note, allow me to explain. We only fight because we are so much alike. Our recent issue involved guilt. I believe Light has finally done something that he feels bad about, and I'm more than willing to rub it in his face for you. You're an outstanding Father, Yagami-san, but I daresay a dash of humility will do Light some good."

He paused for moment before adding quickly. "Besides, he started it."

Soichiro visibly relaxed. If that's all it was, than he really didn't feel the need to worry. He knew his son well enough to admit that Light was lacking in that particular area. He turned to address his son.

"In that case, Light, I forbid you to start anymore fights."

Light would kill him. He, would, die. Light almost couldn't breathe as he struggled to regain some composure.

"If you two are quite finished dissecting my moral character, I believe we should get to work. Father, sit down, you're not going anywhere."

L smiled behind his cup. Typical Light…feel challenged, start ordering. The boy could be so predictable.


	22. Very Good

AN- And here, the real storyline comes into play again. Bit of a serious chapter here, though there is a moment of hilarity. Also, a shameless bit of advertising here, I've turned that one-shot with Light into a series. L had something to say, and I've got a plotbunny for Mello. Series is called Truth, see my profile if you're curious. Thank you for Reading.

Step Lightly,

Mikanis

Very Good

"Yotsuba!"

"What was that, Light-kun?"

"I think I pegged him…look at this." New windows began rapidly popping up on L's screen as Light forwarded the information to his account. L sat back and skimmed them all, biting chips off of his sucker. A crude candy, but he could type while he ate it. The information flickered across his screen, casting lights over his face.

"Very Good, Light-kun."

The information stopped. Light's hands froze over the keyboard for a split second, but then the stream continued. If L hadn't spent the last month in close quarters with the teen he might not have caught it.

Very good? What did that mean? It wasn't…it was just…Light was dumbfounded. He'd just made the first break in the case in weeks, and all he got for it was 'Very Good'? He felt like the detective had patted him on the head or something. He didn't trust himself to speak out loud, so he sent the detective an IM. The screen popped to the side of the streaming information.

"**Very good?"**

"**What were you expecting?"**

"**I…I don't know, but that wasn't it."**

"**You broke my violin, Light. I'm having trouble respecting you, much less being proud of you."**

"**That was below the belt."**

"**If you had any equipment there, I'd feel bad about it."**

The hands froze again, completely this time. Light couldn't look at him, afraid of what he wanted to do at that moment. Violence, true violence, was a rarity with him. Sure, he threw punches, but the urge to KILL something was starting to scare him. He felt…scandalized, horrified, that L would dare speak him like that. The obscene insult touched something very deep his mind, something Light hadn't known existed. For a brief moment, he wondered why he hadn't slaughtered the man in his sleep…he'd had ample opportunity, and he was just wasting it, just wasting time until…

Until What?

And it was gone…All of it. Ten seconds of his life he'd never get back, and he didn't even know why.

That was scary.

He contented himself with casting L a scathing glare, and paused again. L was watching him. Light feared for a moment that he'd witnessed that brief lapse in sanity. L gave no indication, simply re-arranged the information and re-directed it to the team's workstations.

"We've had a break, gentlemen."

There was a communal sigh of relief. L temporarily took control of their computers with a Master-slave mask, and began sorting through the information. The mask-setting allowed him to control all computers on the network, and allowed said users to see what he was doing on their machine. He read through them all, commenting aloud, highlighting important notes with his mouse, cutting and pasting said bulletins to a document file on one side. When he was done, he save the report to the network, and released their computers.

They all turned to face the center of the room, like an inverted conference office.

L reassigned tasks, reset guidelines and goals, moved dates and changed plans. Light watched the proceeding quietly. L gave him due credit of course, and he was rewarded with bright smiles from the thankful team. He'd just narrowed their searches and work options by considerable hours.

Still Light, waved it off. It bothered him…bothered him more than it should. L did not care…L no longer respected him. It mattered. That lone fact was going to drive Light insane, because in truth, he didn't know when it happened, when he started caring, when L's friendship became an integral part of his thinking. He'd never realized how much he was coming to depend on the Detective to back him up. It was nice to have someone competent on his side, he supposed, but it was startling to realize that yes, he had been friendly to the man, and yes, he had wanted the detective to think well of him.

Worse, a part of his mind was still lingering on the image of that damnable chain wrapped around L's slender throat. Of pulling it until the white flesh darkened, bruised. Pulling it until he could finally discern the spark of life in those dark eyes. He could never see it now, but he was sure it was there, like the familiarity the detective had shown him. He hadn't known it existed until it was gone, and there was a solid brick wall there.

The image refused to leave his head completely.

He snuck a glance at the detective as he returned to his work.

_Why do I want to kill you?_


	23. Friendship

Light woke that night, suddenly wide awake and thinking. It was one of the unpleasant cases, when one wakes and doesn't know why, and for a moment, forgets that they were asleep to begin with. The sudden intrusion of reality, and the subsequent paranoia…

L was staring at him, there in the dark. He started to sit up, but a slender hand came to cover his mouth.

"Listen." Light hesitated.

"I know what you were thinking earlier, Light-kun." Light felt heat in his cheeks, shame burning them, and he dropped L's eyes. Or rather, he stopped looking at the spot of darkness where's L's eyes should have been. L watched, nodding to himself.

"And I am talking to Light Yagami now." He removed his hand, resting his chin on his knees.

"I have not seen that face in a while, Light-kun. I do not know where it comes from, but I know why it is there. Kira is in you, hidden away somewhere, and you have valuable information locked in that mind of yours." Light opened his mouth to protest,

"Information that might just kill me." And he closed it again.

"If that part of you is becoming stronger, then something is about to happen. I don't know what, but I guarantee you that I will find out. While I'm here, talking to Light Yagami, I want to remind you that I will be watching you very closely while we investigate this lead. You are, and always will be, under my suspicion. I'm sorry if that offends you, but it is a simple fact. I know what that look means, I've seen it hundreds of times, on hundreds of faces. Kira may kill me. I am very aware of this, but I joined this battle willingly. It is the first case that I've accepted with any form of excitement. If he weren't a murderer, I'd have a great respect for Kira, because the man is insanely clever."

Light frowned, but didn't interrupt. Whatever this speech was, it'd been weighing heavily on L's mind…L's voice lowered, quieted, as thought imparting some sad and terrible secret.

"With that, I tell you this.

You were, are, and will be Kira again. I know it. Though it saddens me greatly, I know that eventually you will get the death penalty, even if I must pull every strand in my great web to ensure that you do, in fact, die.

However, for all your faults, you are my only friend. So, I'll make you this deal. I'm giving you the chance to work this case, without restriction, aside from this confinement. You'll have full access to every resource at my disposal, and I will only monitor your use of them." He leaned in close for just a moment.

"Take this case…and redeem yourself. Show them all that you could have been a great man, a great detective. That is all I can offer you. Use this case to make the Yagami name proud…and do it before I solve it and am forced to kill my only friend."

Light stared at him.

"Now try to go back to sleep. We must rise early."

AN-I have made a decision. There will be two more chapters in this story, and then I will continue it as a second story. The second set shall be called "Concerto in D Minor" and will go up within a few days of the finishing of Violins. I'm doing this because I believe that 25 chapters is all one person can handle in one sitting, and I plan to leave this off in such a manner that anyone who is tired of my writing does not have to continue. The Second volume will be up soon, I promise. Opinions on this are welcome.

Step Lightly-

Mikanis


	24. Chapter 23 and Half

AN- Taking a moment to reply to this review, because she asked some very good questions.

**I'm a little confused... When L said "take this case," was he just talking about the Kira case...?**

Yes, that was in reference to him taking on the Kira case, and not intended to imply anything else. He's trying to be blunt hereSomething he's not used to doing.

**And how would that redeem Light?**

**  
**L is probably the only person in the world capable of understanding how great a detective Light could have been. He's the only one who sees his full potential, and he knows that Kira has taken away whatever life Light might have led. No matter how this turns out, Light will never live a normal life, and it doesn't matter if Light is Kira or just a tool of his...he's not the person he would have been otherwise. L's giving him the opportunity to show off his skills, and have them be appreciated, before he's killed. Kind of like " Go on, Show them how fast you can run before I break your legs."

**Anyway, it's cool that you want to break this up into two stories, but make sure you have a fairly good conclusion.**

I already have most of it written, love. In my head anyways... I just need to iron out a few things, ProofRead, and write the final Chapter.

**And just a couple more questions, about the sequel: Is it still going to be humour?**

Decidedly Not. It will have it's moments, much like everything after Chapter 10 of Violins, but I can't bring myself to do much more than that.

** And relating to that, is the sequel going to go into more of a romance? I'm not saying full-out yaoi, but an honest and respectable growth in their relationship leading to love.**

Don't ruin it for them! But Yes, pretty much...I can't bring myself to post anything overly erotic, simply because I'm a shy person. I feel that things like that are simply too private. Also, I agree with SpotofPaint (whom I exalt as an author), I just can't see L and Light getting smutty. I really can't. Besides, while the sex is good fun and all, I think the emotional side of the puzzle is a much more challenging write. I'm looking forward to it.**  
**

**SORRY about the long review, I just really enjoy this story, so I like giving my opinion**.

Reviews like this are the reason I keep writing. All of you, Don't ever hesitate to tell me what you think of something, no matter how small. If I couldn't handle constructive criticism, I would know better than to post on a public forum. However, if you have something to say that is negative, and you don't want to embarrass me, I have turned my private messages on, and you can write me anytime.

Now, some of you may have noticed that I don't write often on the weekends. That's because the family's home and we're doing family things. Be patient with meh.

Violins **will** end by Two o' clock on Wednesday afternoon. Concerto will likely debut sometime Friday morning.

There... that should keep you from being too angry with me, and motivate me to write. The next chapter will lay the groundwork for the sequel, and the final chapter will tie everything up with a nice pretty bow for all of you that feel I'm dragging on now...

Spot of Paint- Friend or Foe, and Now Friend of Flame. Required reading for all DN LxLight Fans. Out-frickin-standing, lol.

My best wishes, and many thanks to you.

Step lightly,

Mikanis


	25. Power

Light got little sleep that night. L's words somehow managed to deeply disturb him, and yet…not affect him at all. He felt detached from the emotions playing tag with his head, even though he knew they were there, and could feel them. It was like they belonged to someone else. For a long time, they both sat back against the pillows and headboard, and stared into the darkness at the foot of the bed. After an hour or so, when he realized that Light wasn't going to sleep again, L pulled his laptop up and began working.

Light was torn in two directions…he felt that he should say something, but to do so would be almost disrespectful. So L did still consider him a friend…he was ashamed to say that that put some part of his guilt at rest. Light had never met someone who didn't accept him. He'd never hurt anyone to the extent that they no longer cared about him…even Takada still liked him, and they'd parted on odd terms. The idea of someone hating him was almost offensive. He felt spoiled again.

In the end…Light said nothing, though two or three pretty counter-speeches danced across his tongue. They were empty though…he had nothing to say at all. All of his speeches were as clear as water, and he didn't see the point in them. The steady, dull clicking of L's fingers soon lulled him sleep, and he stayed that way…chin on his chest, arms crossed.

L worked through the morning, stopping only briefly when Watari shook him from his trance for his morning tea and cake. Light had slipped down in his sleep, and his arm was thrown over his face. He'd be stiff when he woke.

L let him sleep anyway.

XXXX

It was…decidedly different to walk into the investigation room the next day. Light stepped through the door in a perfectly calm-looking state of emotional turmoil.

L cast a sidelong glance at him as he reached for the power button of his computer.

"Prepare yourself, Light-kun."

As the machine started and programs began opening automatically, Light's eyes widened. There were almost a hundred new programs showing on his screen, and the amount of document files tabbed at the bottom of the screen had nearly tripled. There had been close to a _thousand_ before. His contact list went from three hundred people to 2,378 contact _groups_, each a subcategory with at least thirty people in them. Finally, when his screen was a chaotic mess, a tiny, tiny box appeared in the bottom left corner.

Search.

Light tore his eyes from the monitor to find L with a tiny, proud smirk on his face.

"How do you function with all of this?" L rolled his eyes to the ceiling for a moment.

"Well…carefully."

"What _is_ all of this?" He clicked on a colorful screen at the top. Something in Chinese…

"Before you get click-happy Light-kun, I highly recommend you set your computer to auto-translate. You won't be able to read half of this if you don't."

"I can read Japanese and English fluently."

"As I said, you won't understand half of this. Just…hold on a minute, I'll sort through it with you." L turned around and gave the rest of the team their assignments. Light scowled at his screen and reluctantly admitted that the Detective was right. He could read, maybe, one in five of the windows…he recognized several languages though. German, English, French, Russian, Spanish…the Majors he could puzzle out.

"Ready, Light-kun?"

"As I'll ever be." L nodded and slaved his computer. He clicked on the window just under the one Light had brought up. An IM screen appeared in the bottom corner, and Light watched the secondary cursor move through the program quickly, glossing over the functions.

"**This is a Godsend…it's a global translating program written by the Koreans. It's by far the most accurate I've found, and it's constantly updating. It covers nearly every language from five hundred years ago to present time. Better yet, you can set it to automatically translate every file that enters your account into any language."**

"**So you can't actually read all of this, either?"**

"**A vast majority of it, yes. It's really the various dialects that I have trouble with. Learn the core of a language, and you can puzzle out the rest though."**

**"How accurate is it?"**

**"If I wished, I could accuse you of fornicating with my mother's pig in fluent Swahili. Slang is optional.  
Now…moving on…" **

Two hours later, Light had an entirely new respect for L. This had to be the singular most powerful man on the planet. He had nearly every world leader, and few that had retired on his personal email, and even deleted two while they sorted through the mess, because they had recently been assassinated.

Of course, once everything was sorted and L showed him use of a tabbing program that L himself had written, he realized that L had allowed that waterfall of information strictly to show it off. He was proud of this, if nothing else…his great web of people. Light wondered how the hell he could know so many people and still have only one friend.

Light wondered how he could be that friend. It was depressing.

Light was almost scared to touch his keyboard when L finally gave him control back.

XXXX

By Lunchtime, Light was practically salivating at his newfound freedom. L left the IM window up and guided him through the few programs that he tried to use and got stuck with…L never had to show him twice, though. He basked in this power like a kitten sleeping by the fire. He could email a President, and then with a phone call order his assassination from a list of professional criminals. Once he even hit the wrong button and called a Russian contact. L had hissed in irritation and silenced the room with a jerk of his hand. He turned on the "L voice" and they spoke quietly for a moment in fluent Russian, and Light felt his face heat in desire…the desire to be able to DO that, to just…be an entity. To be known, and needed, all over the globe.

A childish grin was plastered on Light's face when L finally managed to end the banter with the Russian detective. The man was drunk, but regarded a call from L as an intense emergency. L had to think of some nonexistent crisis and fast, or risk losing his respect. Russians were finicky about that…you did not call while they were not at work, and you absolutely did NOT interrupt their drinking time unless the world was ending. Light had managed to find the perfect window of opportunity to do both. He was a child…no, he was _L_ in a candy shop with these new abilities.

L said nothing when the call finally ended; just cast another sidelong glance at Light. The boy was far too curious to feel bad about it, and was already diving back into his computer. L watched his enthusiasm with both amusement and something akin to apprehension. He'd known how Light would react, but still to be face to face with this power-hungry side of Light was disconcerting to say the least.

Misa came to visit during lunch, and there was a small outcry at the bandage on her arm. She immediately noticed the men tensing and played it down.

"Oh Misa just slipped in the bathroom and scratched herself on the counter! MisaMisa can be so clumsy sometimes, you know?" All the right blushes, all the right giggles…Even L had to admit that she lied beautifully.

It did nothing for his mood.

AN- As I write these final chapters, I have the entire DN manga collection stacked on the couch next to me. I will be using this as a constant reference for the sequel to this story, and I'm using it now to lead into Concerto. I found myself with some unexpected time last night, and with the exception of a final polish, Violins is officially written. I will likely post it tonight (Sunday) between the hours of six and nine. In the event that this does not happen, it will be posted the moment I get out bed Monday, promise.

This chapter is just laying the bones for the next, and it's really just stretching my drama muscle I guess. The next chapter will be serious as well, and the next story will be written in a similar fashion. I'm taking the rest of the afternoon to write for my other two stories. I need to back away from Violins so that I can read it objectively and fix mistakes. Look for many updates tonight.

Step Lightly,

Mikanis.


	26. The End of Something

AN- I've just been informed that I may not have computer access tonight, so instead of being late about it...I might as well give ya what you want. So Loves, here you have it, the finale of Violins, Light. I'm sorry the opening is so erratic, but I needed to set everything in place, and the second half will hopefully make up for it.

Two weeks passed. They'd narrowed everything down to seven members of the Yotsuba group, and had tapped the building and sent in a spy as Eraldo Coil.

Aiber had been something new…He'd walked in and introduced himself as two different people and had half the team believing him before the handshakes were through. L and Light just smiled. He'd shaken Light's hand as L shook them out of the man's spell.

"…And this is Light Yagami."

"I didn't need to know his name, L….I always recognize a fellow member of the business." The conman's hand had suddenly made Light feel dirty.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Aiber had just smiled…

Light didn't like to think about it now.

Misa's bandage came off just in time for her to play a role in their plans...You couldn't tell she'd even been injured. Watari knew his medical. She'd come running to hug Light, showing off her perfect skin again. Light had sighed, until L got this funny little grin on his face.

"Purple is my favorite color, Misa." She'd hit him, blushing furiously while Light laughed. It had felt good to laugh for a moment.

They'd somehow managed to kill Matsuda in the world's eyes.

"Heh…kinda cool to be a dead man walking, I guess." He'd remarked after finding his tiny obituary and taping it to his monitor.

Everything was…changing, and that feeling of sick excitement never once dulled out in the pit of his stomach. He couldn't eat, he couldn't sleep. Something, no…_Everything_, was about to happen, whether he wanted or was ready for it. It affected the entire team…after months of nothing, of dead ends and meaningless tedium, things were finally moving again. Matsuda was about to go on television and unmask Kira...Higuchi of the Yotsuba seven...

Higuchi.

Everything hinged on Higuchi.

XXXX

They took a two hour break so that everyone could emotionally prepare themselves…L said he needed to make some calls and further preparations, but this was a lie. He needed to stave off that wild feeling in his heart as well…

Two hours until they came face-face with Kira.

Two hours.

L started them with a shower. If the water hadn't eventually gone cold he might have stayed the entire two hours in there…as it was, there was deeper cold, one seemingly laid along his bones. Fear…He marveled at the sensation. L really had no problem sacrificing men in the past if the cause was great enough. In fact, if this mission led to the end of Kira, he'd likely forgive himself a few deaths afterwards. He'd grown rather fond of his Japanese team, however…even Matsuda. It'd been a long time since he dealt with what he called Real People. People that he thought stood up for humanity like no others could…represented what being human was really about. Matsuda had made his decision then and there…he would go through with the plan. In that moment, he'd seemed like a different person. L had always known the rookie was stronger than he looked, but he'd underestimated the sheer heart the man possessed.

It was utterly depressing.

He'd said he was ready now, but…Still, no one else was. Two hours were warranted, for everyone on the team.

This was Kira, after all.

He stepped out of the shower and toweled his hair. Light sat on the closed toilet, his fingers laced and his head resting on them. L dressed quickly.

"It's free if you want it, Light-kun."

"I'm fine…" He didn't look up.

"Is there something…else on your mind?" L's own mind was racing, and he could carry eight trains of thought at one time. He couldn't imagine what Light felt like.

"Hmm? Oh…Your Violin has arrived. Watari set it on the bed for you."

L's eyes widened…he'd forgotten. He'd actually forgotten that Light was buying him a new violin. Thinking on it now, he remembered seeing the order when he read through the computer log for Light's account, but…he'd completely missed it. This Yotsuba business was weighing heavily on him. Light still hadn't moved.

"L…do you think I'm crazy?"

"…Sometimes."

Light raised his head and regarded him quietly for a moment.

"Yeah…me too." L's thumb came to his lips as he considered this statement. The week's events were having a profound impact on the boy's mind. L only sunk further into his depression as he integrated it into the Kira Scheme. That was what he called his mental check list of comparisons between Light and Kira.

"Are we really about to go through with this?"

"Yes. Matsuda-san is a credit to Japan and its police force."

"Agreed."

Light stood suddenly and motioned towards the door. L led out, and saw a small, black case lying beneath his pillow. There was a red ribbon on the handle, and a wry smile graced his lips. Watari had suggested the ribbon out of sarcasm, he knew, but Light must have taken him seriously. Light had probably chosen the color as well.

Light himself went to recline on his pillows, his legs stretched out, looking at something that was suddenly much more interesting than it usually would be. Under different circumstances, L would likely have made this experience as miserable for him as possible, drawing it out, prolonging his embarrassment. But with the Upcoming Mission…That wasn't happening tonight. L was glad to just take this one piece of happiness and use it as a buffer for the upcoming drama.

His hands didn't shake as he reached and opened the case. He lifted the lid as he came to sit next to Light on his side of the bed. The smell of new wood arose, but not the old books and fine oils that his old one had. He knew that would come with time. Light pointedly looked away, even leaned a few centimeters as he tried to put distance between them. L knew this is likely the most awkward moment of his life…because this was likely the only real gift he'd ever given. The only one with any meaning to him, personally, and it must be galling to know that it was for the wiry detective next to him.

L lifted the violin out, and his breath caught. It was a beautiful piece…far more expensive than his old one, and heavier. He glanced at Light, questioning…

"I…drew from some college money…a grant for music that I never made use of. Don't worry about it."

"'Only a fool believes Price and Value to be the same thing.', Light-kun." He lay the violin across his knees and pulled out the red silk sheathe that held the bow. Red..the silk lining was red too…Light's touch was definitely present in this gift. L supposed it would be a reminder of him…after…after all was said and done.

He inspected the bow and returned it to its case. The violin was a magnet for his attention, however, and he needed to hold it for a moment. The wood was a beautiful cherry-wood stain, the color of half dried blood, or preserved rose petals. He decided he liked the extra weight; it sat better on his shoulder.

Light opened his mouth and paused…

Light was the only person in the world who could blush and scowl at the same time. It made L smile.

"Yes, Light-kun?"

"Just…turn it over…there's something I asked for that…just…" He trailed off, sighing and gesturing with a hand. L was sure his stomach was turning with humiliation. He turned it over and froze.

There, in the center of the curve, at the heart of the instrument…was L's insignia.

The Gothic L wasn't burned or carved…both of which would ruin the instrument by creating weakness. Nor was it painted, which would have dimmed the instrument's beauty by a few degrees.

It was merely stained a darker color, a deep vibrant red, crimson burnished wood.

L couldn't breathe.

It was…perfect.

He was mesmerized by the letter, running his fingers over the varnish. It was perfectly done…the stain was contained, precise, and sealed over, so that it was part of the wood itself. His fingers met nothing but perfectly smooth wood.

He put it back on his knees before he dropped it and looked at Light. Light's eyes were closed, but the bright flush on his cheeks spoke volumes. He hated this. He felt absolutely disgusted with himself, he was tired, and he was still cuffed to the one person in the world he wanted to be away from right now.

Even that didn't matter, didn't dim the gift. L's eyes returned to his avatar, and his mind, which only minutes ago had been racing so fast that he was developing a rare headache…it was quiet now.

"Thank you, Light."

Light flinched as though struck, but recovered quickly…

"I…Is it good enough?"

"It's perfect." Light went crimson again and sighed heavily. He opened his eyes and looked at the detective for the first time since they left the bathroom. L was smiling at him…the same smile that he wore when he played. Light nodded slowly to himself at the unguarded expression, and the tension visibly drained from his shoulders.

"Good…I…that's Good. I guess something's going to end tonight."

L returned his eyes to his beautiful violin.

"Yes…something."

"Kira perhaps?"

"No...I don't think so. But something will end."

AN- And there you have it. The Price and Value quote is credited to my favorite poet, Antonio Machado. Chapters will be longer in the sequel, all reviews welcome. Thank you so much for reading.

Step lightly,

Mikanis


End file.
